Quiet Torment
by cahula
Summary: This is a fan fiction with the focus on a made up character,Gai's sister. She is a pysche ninja that uses a special kind of jutsu to get into people's minds. She uses her abilities to help with questioning enemies of The Hidden Leaf and healing the minds of the traumatized. She may be innocent physically, but her mental innocence is gone as a result of being inside twisted minds.
1. Chapter 1

_**Disclaimer: I do not own the rights to Naruto. Duh. Enjoy!**_

* * *

Miki glided down the hall in Konoha's hospital. She wore her usual black shorts and long sleeved green form fitting shirt to hide burn scars, her messenger bag she always carried with her hanging from her shoulder. She was on her way to see Gai, who had returned from his recent mission in rough condition as usual.

She always told her big brother to be careful every time he left for a dangerous mission, but it would only earn her a long winded speech from him about youth and ambition. Miki sighed as she pushed through double doors and continued up the long hall.

**The power of youth knows no bounds!**

Miki heard her brother shouting and quickened her pace, some things never change no matter how old they get. Even as he approaches his mid twenties Gai still refuses to slow down, Miki thought with an irritated grin. She slipped through the door to his room casually to find him standing at the window, giving a speech about the power of youth, his head wrapped in bandages. Two nurses stood in front of him, one holding a needle behind her back.

"Big brother, are you tormenting these poor nurses?" Miki paced casually over to the hospital bed that Gai should be in and grabbed the chart.

"Ah, my little sister came to see me! Notice how she struggles to hide tears of joy that her brother has returned safely from his dangerous mission! Fear not, little Miki! Your older brother-"

"Has 11 broken ribs, internal bleeding...and oh a fractured skull." Miki flicked her raven hair over her shoulder before looking at Gai. "I'm surprised someone was able to crack your think skull."

"I know it troubles you deeply to see your big brother injured." Gai turned to stare dramatically at the sunset. Miki knew he was no doubt beginning to tear up, he is such an emotional man. She rolled her eyes as he continued. "Rest assured, little sister, I would never leave you in this world alone."

Miki's shoulders sagged as she sighed and hooked the chart back to the bed.

"Gai, you need to get back into bed." Miki gestured for the two nurses to leave as she approached him. The nurses left eagerly, thanking Miki on the way out. She only responded with a polite smile and nod.

Gai turned around and gave her his signature broad smile with the thumbs up. Miki had to admit to herself that it was impressive that no matter how much pain her brother was in or how severe his injuries were, it never got him down.

"Why don't you sit down and tell me what happened on your mission?" Miki said gently as she gestured toward the bed.

"I don't know if your gentle heart can handle it, little sister, but I will honor your request for my knowledge." Gai turned from the window, his face bruised completely on the right side.

"My heart will be just fine, have a seat." Miki pointed firmly at the bed. She had spend many late nights in this hospital counseling Shinobi that had witnessed traumatizing battles and helped them cope with loss or whatever troubled them.

Gai reluctantly gave in and sat down on his bed. "My tale is one of great passion, sorrow, and personal sacrifice."

"Ok...Gai, just tell me what happened." She dropped her bag next to the chair facing him and sat down, her muscles silently thanking her.

Gai's dark eyes drooped momentarily before he picked up his usual dramatic narrative tone, "I was on a mission with my students, and I had to protect them. I did what was necessary to protect the future generation of Shinobi. It would have been a tragedy for the Hidden Leaf to lose it's future heroes."

"So you don't want to talk about it?" Miki sighed. It had been a long day for her, having dealt with assisting in an interrogation before the sun was even up. Then shortly after arriving to the hospital for her normal work day, a ninja had woke up from a coma believing he was the reincarnation of the Second Hokage.

When Gai didn't answer, Miki's thoughts continued on her previous patient. She hoped that he would be more calm and open to therapy tomorrow when she returned to work. Wait! Gai is never quiet, she thought to herself.

"Gai?" Miki's gaze focused back on him.

Gai had fallen asleep sitting up, no doubt exhausted from the chakra he had used up in his fight. His injuries may not be life threatening, but he needed to rest.

Miki smiled and shook her head as she stood. Her older brother had always been stubborn and it was a trait she found endearing of him at times.

"Come on," She whispered as he gently eased him to lay down.

"...need more training..." Gai mumbled as Miki covered him with a blanket.

"There will be plenty of time for that when you heal, big brother." Miki chuckled softly, patting her him on the head. "For now, just get some rest."

Miki sat back down in the chair next to his bed. She debated on a few minutes as to whether she should stick around until he woke up or go on home to get some rest herself. She looked out the window at the sunset painted sky, it was almost night time. Tomorrow was going to be a long day, and Gai would most likely sleep through the night.

Miki yawned, rubbing the sleep out of her eyes. She stood and picked up her bag, deciding on going home.

"Goodnight, Gai. I'll check on you in the morning." She turned and started towards the door, raven hair swaying behind her. She stopped just short of the door way before looking over her shoulder, "And don't give the nurses such a hard time."

Miki turned to walk out the door, she stepped outside of the door and turned the corner quickly. She was met by a man with wild, silver hair. The two of them almost collided, both seem to be lost in their own thoughts.

"Kakashi-san, excuse me." Miki cleared her throat.

"Oh, hey Miki-chan." The only indication Kakashi was smiling was his happily closed eye, the lower half was covered up.

"Did you come to see Gai?" Miki held on to the strap of her messenger bag.

"Oh, Gai is here?" Kakashi replied nonchalantly.

"Yeah, the big oaf was going on about how the power of youth would revive him or something, he's going to be just fine." Miki replied knowing good and well that Kakashi was only playing it cool and he was actually here to check on Gai.

"That sounds about right." Kakashi tilted his head to the side.

"Well, he's asleep now...finally." Miki shifted her bag to the other shoulder.

"Oh," Kakashi scratched his head.

"Well," Miki shrugged. "Have a goodnight, Kakashi-san."

Miki stepped around Kakashi clutching the strap to her messenger bag. She had no reason to hurry home. Miki lived alone in a one bedroom apartment that she shared with her cat, Sushi.

Sushi was a stray that some Genin found during one of their missions in the villages. She named him Sushi because they had found him in an alley behind a sushi restaurant and brought him in only to find that he wasn't the cat they were looking for. Miki, having over heard the conversation, offered to take the cat home with her. It was a plus that Gai, from the bottom of his over-dramatic-heart, did not like cats.

"Hey, Miki-chan." Kakashi called to her, stopping her in the hallway.

She turned around and smiled at him patiently. "Yes, Kakashi-san?"

"I was actually on my way out." Kakashi lied. "Would you like to grab a drink before heading home?" He paused a moment before adding, "My treat?"

Truth be told, Miki preferred quiet evenings at home, preparing for her next day. Counseling Shonobi was a full time job and it required much time, energy, and studying. But after her ordeal with the current Hokage's request to help with this morning's interrogation and then Gai, she could use a drink. She had always found Kakashi's company to be pleasant, he didn't mind if she was quiet or distant in her own thoughts.

"Um, sure Kakashi-san." Miki gave a small smile. Maybe he wanted to ask her about Gai's latest mission and what exactly happened. Unfortunately, Miki didn't have the chakra left to probe Gai's mind to know what had happened for sure. Today had left her completely drained and tired.

She turned and walked with Kakashi down the hallway. They made their way out of the hospital in silence.

* * *

"You're kidding, right?" Miki looked at Kakashi in disbelief as he continued his story. She sighed deeply after coming down from laughing at his story of her older brother.

"I wish I was. Gai honestly challenged me to a rock, paper, scissors contest afterwards." Kakashi lifted his mask momentarily to drink more sake.

"That's my brother!" Miki lifted her drink before tossing it back. She frowned as she rested her elbow on the table, planting her chin inside her palm. "He got beat up pretty bad this time around."

"I've seen him recover from worse." Kakashi replied, sitting across the table from her.

"That is true and so have I." Miki pointed into the air lazily, the alcohol beginning to take its toll on her.

"It's been awhile since we've talked. How have things been?" Kakashi leaned forward to show he was interested.

"Same old thing since we've talked. I'm still a Medic Ninja that works at the hospital, counseling Shonobi through their traumatic experiences. Occasionally I get a request from the Hokage to assist with interrogating a criminal." Miki sighed. Her jutsu allowed her to enter into a person's mind, to better understand them. Sometimes it was rewarding, other times it was just plain disturbing. An image of a man ripping her clothes off, exposing her completely made Miki shake her head before focusing back on Kakashi.

Kakashi's stare made her shift in her seat, his uncovered eye looked at her curiously. It was hard to tell what he was thinking, he kept most of his face covered. He was one of the very few people Miki had a hard time reading. She thought of using some her remianing chakra to take a better look, but she decided that wasn't wise in her drunken state.

"So," She brushed her dark bangs from her face. "How have things been for you?"

Kakashi watched Miki across the table as she brushed her bangs from her dark eyes. Her eyes were such a dark brown, they almost seemed black and blended in with her pupils. She was very much different from her brother. Miki was always calm, collected, and had a good head on her shoulders.

Kakashi leaned back in his seat. "Well, Lady Tsunade has taken on Sakura as her apprentice...Naruto is off doing intense training with Jiraiya...and Sasuke..."

Miki had heard what happened with Sasuke and immediately regretted bringing up painful memories, even though it was unintentional.

"I'm sorry." Miki averted her eyes to the noisy couple sitting at the bar a few feet from them.

Kakashi decided to change the painful subject. "Gai will probably get out of the hospital tomorrow."

Miki snorted before sipping her drink. "He recovers quicker than most people, or so he says."

"Did he say anything about his mission?" Kakashi lifted his mask to take another drink.

"Well, he said he was protecting his students." Miki tapped her chin thoughtfully. "That was all he said before falling asleep."

"Oh." Kakashi replied.

Miki studied his reaction carefully. Kakashi was worried about something, even though he was just trying to play it cool...as usual. Miki could see right through his act. Despite her mind's curiosity, she yawned audibly.

"It is getting late." Kakashi observed.

"Yeah. And I have to deal with The Second Hokage tomorrow." Miki tilted her head back, finishing her drink.

Kakashi responded only with narrowing his eye that wasn't covered by his headband with curiosity.

Miki shook her head. "One of my patients finally woke up from his coma. He claims that he is the Second Hokage."

Kakashi finished his drink as he thought, maybe dealing with Naruto and his hyper activeness isn't as bad as he thought it was.

Miki smiled as she added, "All in a day's work."

"You have some serious patience, Miki-chan." Kakashi complimented as he finished his drink.

"I wouldn't call it patience exactly." Miki thought aloud. "Maybe more like strategic emotional placement."

Miki stood up from her chair and grabbed her bag. "Thanks for the drinks, Kakashi-san. I need to be heading home now."

"I will walk you home." Kakashi's eye closed happily, indicating he was smiling as he stood.

"Thank you." Miki smiled politely as they walked out of the bar together.

They had walked halfway to Miki's apartment in silence, it dawned on her what was probably bothering Kakashi.

"You'll see him again." Miki's voice was above a whisper as she smiled at him encouragingly.

"Who?" Kakashi replied.

"Naruto. I can tell you miss the little knucklehead." Miki giggled. It was hard not to think of little Naurto and not crack a smile. He really is a special kid.

"Oh." Kakashi shrugged. "It has been quieter without him around."

Most mistaken his aloofness for not giving a damn, but Miki knew better. He missed Naruto, and Sasuke was a painful subject for him. She knew better than to bring him up. Sakura had remained here though, training with Lady Tsunade. Miki saw her on occasion in the hospital running errands or practicing healing jutsu.

Miki nodded, "That it has been."

Her head was beginning to hurt, she could feel an echo coming on. Any time she had been inside a particularly violent mind, sometimes visions of it would come back to her. She started calling them echoes to herself.

The first time she experienced an echo, she thought she was loosing her mind completely. It constantly left her asking herself, how many times can the human mind bend until it just snaps completely?

"Miki?" Kakashi stood in front of her apartment door. "Are you alright?"

Miki rubbed her temple, she needed to be alone so that the echo could run its course.

"I'm fine. It's just been a long day." She replied, reaching for the door knob.

Kakashi had reached for it at the same time, her hand brushed over his. She looked up at him through long eyelashes, her face flushed as her hand retreated.

Kakashi opened the door for her and stood back. "Goodnight, Miki-chan."

"Goodnight, Kakashi-san." Miki slipped past him and went inside the apartment. She heard him shut the door gently behind her, she exhaled deeply in relief.

She heard Sushi's paws pitter before he greeted her with a loud meow. Miki reached down and petted the fluffy black and white cat absent mindedly, her gaze indifferent.

"Hey, Sushi. Did you miss me?" Miki soothed as she scratched under his chin, his purrs answering her. "Let's get you fed."

Miki staggered into her small kitchen, getting a small can of cat food out of the cabinet. Her eyes were distant, as if in a trance as she emptied the contents into the bowl.

"Here you go, Sushi." She cooed as she set the food down. He immediately began eating as she patted his fluffy head. "Goodnight."

Miki went into the bedroom and began undressing, she wanted to take a shower to wash away the crazy day she had. She picked up a towel and went into her bathroom.

Standing in front of the mirror, she frowned at the scars that covered her top half almost completely. She had been burned badly as a child during the Nine Tails Demon's rampaged that almost completely destroyed the village. The scars stretched across her stomach and in between her breasts, it reached up to her neck. It also covered her left arm completely, from her shoulder to her hand. Most people didn't notice the scars that peeked from the collar of her shirt or the ones that peeked from her sleeve at her wrist.

Truth be told she didn't cover it for vanity reasons, she just hated the look of pity people would give her when they saw her scars. She was thankful that her face had been spared of any scarring.

She picked up her hair brush and began working it through her long, raven hair that fell down to her waist. She smiled at her reflection as she recalled her evening with Kakashi. Pain ripped through her eyes and travel to the back of her head, her hair brush fell to the floor with a thud.

She gripped the edges of the sink and looked at her reflection with determination. "It's just another echo, Miki. It can't kill you and you'll get through it like always." She told herself. She could feel her pulse quickening, despite her self pep talk.

She turned on the shower and stepped into the warm sprinkles of water. For whatever reason, water always helped her through the echo. It seemed to keep her anxiety and panic at bay. She looked up into the soothing spray of warm water and the world around her melted away.

Darkness settled around her as the man from earlier this morning came into view, his green eyes looked upon her indifferently. They were inside his mind, there was nothing around them. Just like a well trained spy, he kept his mind blank during questioning.

"Tell me your name." Miki wore her professional expression, her face absolutely showing no sign of emotion.

The man didn't answer her, he looked around before his gaze settled back on her.

"Where are we?" His eyes narrowed like a predator's would, sizing up its prey.

"What did you come for?" Miki continued, unaffected by his leering eyes.

He began to pace around her slowly. "Answer my question."

Miki ignored him as she focused her chakra to dive deeper into his mind, searching for anything he could be thinking. The blank scene around them changed into the Hokage's private office.

"What the hell?" His eyes shifted, examining his new surroundings.

"Were you sent to assassinate the Hokage?" Miki always asked straight forward and to the point questions. She may not be good at asking the right questions, but she was damn good at searching minds. She just had to keep him occupied until whatever it was he was hiding came into focus.

He smiled darkly, his green eyes focused completely on Miki as he stepped closer to her, pressing her back into the wall.

Miki's voice didn't waver in least as he bit into her neck. "What did you come here for?" Her voice remained calm and professional.

"I know who you are." He hissed in her ear. "I've heard of the young Pysche Ninja from the Hidden Leaf." His hand grabbed her neck and would have cut off her ability to breath or speak, but this was all only an illusion. Miki was well trained and remained composed as she spoke to him.

"I suppose I should be flattered you've heard of me." She replied, her indifferent tone only angering him. He ripped open the front of her shirt with his free hand and glided his hand up her stomach.

"I'm going to wipe that smug look right off your pretty face and make you scream for me." He growled as he groped her breast with a force that would have bruised her in physical reality.

Miki wanted nothing more than to break her jutsu and get as far away from this pervert as possible, but she needed more information.

Her eyes narrowed on his. "You honestly think you're the first to think of this? Really, I would have expected something a little more creative."

The man ripped away her shorts, fully exposing her body to him. He shoved his fingers into her opening. Miki felt nothing, knowing that this was all in his mind and not actually happening. It angered him even more when she looked at him with bored eyes.

"I'm going to ask you one more time..." Miki smiled politely. "What did you come here for?"

Miki had learned over the years that it was easier to search a person's mind when he or she was full or raw emotion, it was almost always anger or lust. With his or her thoughts completely chaotic and clouded with emotion, it made it easier for her to search. When the thoughts were completely focused and calm, it proved to be much more difficult to search.

Over the years, she had learned to remain calm through whatever the individual she was searching put her through absolute hell. By goading the person into complete emotional chaos, it made her job much easier.

"Shut up." He grunted as he pulled a knife from his pocket and jabbed it into her stomach. Blood flowed from the fresh wound where the knife stuck out.

"You can't actually hurt me here." Miki sighed.

His hand was still closed around her throat, holding her against the wall as he opened his pants to reveal a sizable erection.

"Maybe this will shut you up." He snorted as he forced her down. His hand fisted in her hair as he forced her to take him into her mouth. He grunted in satisfaction as he began pulling her back and forth. "That's better."

Another copy of her stood next to him as she chided, "Once again, do you really think you're the first to try that?"

He closed his eyes, concentrating on the Miki that was on her knees in front of him. He forced her to take him in and out, deeper and faster as he attempted to block out the Miki that stood next to him.

As he was about to climax into her mouth, a scroll fell from shelf above them. It landed at her feet, she picked it up and examined it. Before he orgasmed, Miki broke the jutsu. She had found what she was looking for.

The echo was finally over, Miki opened her eyes. She was sitting at the bottom of her shower...the water was now cold. She screamed, shivering all over. Afraid that her neighbors may hear her screams, she bit into her hand until she tasted blood. She watched as red, blood stained water circled the drain.

How many times? She thought, sobbing. How many times am I going to put myself through that? And for what?

Earlier when it had actually happened in the interrogation room, she broke the jutsu and calmly explained her findings. As for _him,_ he was left sweating and panting in his chair. He was there to steal a scroll that contained forbidden jutsu.

Miki reached up and turned off the shower, forcing deep and calm breaths. She knew why she always went back into the interrogation room, even with the anxiety of what twisted horrors would await for her. It was for the good of The Hidden Leaf. She liked to think that her abilities prevented further causalities as well as the overall well being of the village.

She stepped out of the shower uneasily, steadying herself against the sink as she dried herself off. She looked at the blood stains on her towel and groaned, blood stains are so hard to get out of fabric. She reached into the medicine cabinet and wrapped a bandage around her hand. She could see blood beginning to stain through the gauze. It wouldn't have bleed so bad if she didn't have so much alcohol in her system.

Miki pulled her nightshirt over her head and turned out the light. Sushi was already in bed, waiting for her. She slipped under the covers and felt all her muscles sigh in relief as she lay on her side facing the cat. Sushi repositioned himself against her chest, his purrs loosening the tight ball of anxiety she still felt from the echo. She focused on the vibrations of his purrs until the ball was almost non existent and she finally fell asleep.


	2. Chapter 2

Miki entered Gai's room quietly, so that she wouldn't wake him if he was still sleeping. It was still early, the sun wasn't up yet. She wanted to get to the hospital early so that she could spend time with him before her day started. She tip toed through the dark room and settled into the chair next to his bed.

Gai was sleeping peacefully, Miki watched his steady breathing as she leaned back in the chair. Her eyes felt heavy, she wasn't sure if she just blinked or if she dozed off for a moment.

"Miki?" Gai sat up.

She leaned forward and rubbed her eyes. "Hey."

"Did you stay here all night?" Gai squinted as his eyes adjusted. The sun was starting to come up, bringing more light into the room.

"No. I went home for awhile to sleep. I just got here a few minutes ago." She smiled at her brother. "How are you feeling?"

"Never better." Gai winced, his ribs still hurt. "All I need is rigorous training."

"Well, I think you should wait to see what your doctor says." Miki's voice sounded strained from lack of sleep.

"Are you alright?" Gai tilted his head to look at his sister. She didn't look her usual put-together self. He could see bags under her eyes and her hair was a mess. Was she losing sleep because she was worried about him?

"I'm fine. I had a long day yesterday, didn't sleep well." She brushed her bangs from her eyes with her bandaged hand.

"What happened to your hand?" He asked.

"Uh," Miki shifted in her chair. "I cut it on something. How's your head? Any blurred vision? Headaches?"

Gai forgot about the bandages wrapped around his head, he reached up and pulled them off. "It was never that bad. I don't know why they even put bandages on it."

"Just listen to your doctor and try not to cause another scene." Miki sighed as she stood. She picked up her bag and added. "I know you're eager to get out of here, but just listen to your doctor...for me. Ok?"

Gai was touched by her request. He gave her his signature smile, tears in his eyes and a thumbs up. "Anything for you, little Miki! And stop losing sleep worrying about me, ok?"

"Ok." Miki turned away, hiding her smile. One of the things she could always count on was her brother being annoyingly upbeat and a quick healer.

"Hey, Miki?" Gai called to her retreating back.

She turned around to see him smiling with out stretched arms. She dropped her bag to the floor and dashed over to him. She carefully placed herself in his arms, trying not to put pressure on his ribs. Gai squeezed his sister in a bear hug, ignoring the pain to show her he was fine. He didn't want his little sister to worry about him anymore. She sighed as she felt the tension of last night ease up.

"Do you want to talk about it, Miki?" He patted her back.

"You always know when I need one of your hugs." Miki smiled with her eyes closed. "I'm fine, just had a rough day yesterday. I'm glad you're ok."

"You never have to worry about me!" He squeezed her tighter, ignoring the pain. "You can always count on your big brother to prevail in any obstacle. I will always be there for you."

"And I will always be there for you." Miki pulled away. "I'll come back to see you on my break, ok? We can have lunch together."

"Sounds great!" Gai cheered.

"Later." Miki grabbed her bag and waved bye before closing the door behind her. She felt more ready to take the day on, her brother had that effect on people. Its what made him a great teacher, he could revitalize and inspire almost anyone with his positive attitude.

She made her way down the halls and found her way into her small office. She sat down at her desk after turning on the coffee maker and began sifting through the file left on her desk. The patient who claimed to be the Second Hokage was actually named Ryo. Things were so chaotic when he woke up, he had a complete melt down. Miki had put in a request for his file earlier yesterday, it must have been delivered sometime yesterday evening while she was out.

She turned the pages to find out what his last mission was that left him in a coma, only that information was restricted. She threw the file down on the desk. Miki understood that there was a need for secrecy, but when it came to her patients she needed full disclosure in order to help them.

She reached over for the pot of coffee and filled her mug. It was going to be a long day trying to untangle the mess of Ryo's mind and help him recover. She sipped at the coffee as she stared off thoughtfully.

The scroll she had picked up while she was in the mind of the man they were questioning yesterday rolled across her desk. Miki's body went rigid as she dropped her coffee. The mug fell to the floor and shattered, splattering all over the front of her shirt. She reached for the scroll and it was gone.

"I need to get more sleep." Miki thought aloud as she blinked hard. She reached over for a tissue and mopped the coffee off her shirt. She slid her chair back and knelt on the floor to pick up the pieces of the smashed mug.

"Hey, you alright in here?" Dr. Usagi stuck her head in my door. Her bright red hair was tied back in a pony tail and thick dark rimmed glasses set on her petite face.

"Yeah." Miki glanced up at her before going back to cleaning up. "You know how it is in early in the morning. Sorry for the commotion."

"No problem." She waved before ducking back out into the hall.

Miki sank back into her chair. What was that all about? She'd never hallucinated like that before. Now that she thought about it, she left the interrogation in such a hurry she didn't bother to find what exactly was on that scroll. What kind of forbidden jutsu was he trying to steal? She needed to find out who that man was, who he was working for, and what kind of jutsu he was trying to steal.

It was late in the morning, and Gai was bored. He paced around the room impatiently, looking out his window from time to time. He was too young and in his prime to be stuck inside of a hospital, he thought to himself. Every minute he stayed here, he wasted precious time he could be training his students. But he would do anything for his little sister, even if it meant hanging around here a little longer. She was the only family he had left and that made her most precious to him.

He remembered Miki sitting in the chair earlier this morning, half asleep. She had seen him in worse condition than he was currently in, so why did she seem so disturbed? She had grown more quiet over the past few years and more withdrawn, but she was always open with him. So why did it feel like she was hiding something from him now?

He was going to find out what it was or who it was that was troubling her so much. They would go days even weeks without talking sometimes, depending on his missions. He had been pretty preoccupied lately, maybe he missed a major change in her life. Maybe some punk had broken her heart! Gai's hands fisted at the thought, no one would ever hurt his sister.

Kakashi strolled into the room casually with a book in his hand, "Hey Gai."

Gai smiled, his eternal rival had come to see him. "Well hello, Kakashi!"

"Thought you might be bored. I've spent enough time in here to know that it gets boring." He shrugged. "So what has you so worked up?"

Gai relaxed his posture, "Something is bothering little Miki and I'm going to cheer her up!" He flashed his nice guy smile.

"Oh." Kakashi's eye closed happily. "That's nice."

"I don't think you understand the severity of the situation, she is very depressed." Gai looked out the window, brooding.

"Well, Gai, sometimes people get down. That's just how things are, but that's really nice you want to cheer her up. I think you may be exaggerating, though. I went out with her last night and she was just fine." Kakashi flipped through his book casually.

Gai's eye twitched. "You went out with MY sister?"

Kakashi closed the book and looked over at Gai. "Yeah, I bumped into her on the way out of here and she looked stressed. So I offered to get a drink with her."

The vein in Gai's forehead began to bulge. "You went out for a drink with her?" It annoyed him how cool Kakashi played everything, like nothing was a big deal.

"Well, yeah that's what I just said." Kakashi leaned against the wall.

Gai knew that Kakashi and Miki spent time together as friends and he had convinced himself he was ok with that, but he still didn't have to like it. Kakashi and her got along well and seemed to enjoy each other's company.

"Well, she wasn't ok this morning. She was asleep in the chair when I woke up." Gai pointed at the chair by his bed.

"That reminds me, shouldn't you be in bed?" Kakashi's eye squinted at him.

Gai ignored him and continued. "She looked like absolute hell and tried to play it off. Have any idea what that could be all about?"

"I don't." Kakashi was being truthful and Gai knew that. "I didn't notice anything strange about her."

"Something is wrong. And as her big brother, I will get to the bottom of it!" Gai vowed with a closed fist.

He continued to go on a rant as Kakashi's shoulders sagged with a sigh, when Gai vowed to do something... come hell or high water he stuck to it. It was a noble and sometimes stupid quality about him. Still, his dedication to his sister and friends was one of the things he respected about Gai.

"Right, Kakashi?" Gai smile broadly.

"I'm sorry, what?" Kakashi smiled with a closed eye politely.

Gai's vein on his forehead almost popped.

The door opened, Gai and Kakashi turned to see who was here. Miki glided through the door, her eyes tired.

"Hey Gai-" She stopped, noticing Kakashi was with him. "Good afternoon, Kakashi-san. I'm sorry, I didn't mean to intrude."

Kakashi nodded politely and watched her carefully. Maybe Gai was actually right about something. He noticed her bandaged hand first, it was the same hand that brushed his last night when they both touched her door knob. Her eyes didn't have their usually twinkle, they seemed more preoccupied than usual. The skin beneath her eyes almost looked bruised from lack of sleep.

"You're not intruding at all." Gai smiled.

"Well, I pulled some strings and I can get you discharged now, BUT..." She emphasized to keep him listening. "They are releasing you to my care...so if you want to get out of here...I'll leave work for the day-"

Gai didn't even wait for her to finished before he started pulling IV's out and shouting, "About time!"

Gai was a fast healer, maybe it was mind over matter with him, or maybe it was the advanced healing jutsu of the medic ninjas. Miki smiled with a shrug, she knew of all people the power of the human mind is limitless.

"Well, let's get out of here. Go change." Miki pointed at the bathroom. "We'll grab lunch on the way home."

Gai left the room quickly to go the bathroom to change, he didn't need to be asked twice.

Miki looked up at Kakashi. "Would you like to join us?"

"Uh..." Kakashi hesitated on answering.

"Of course he would!" Gai was back in the room, fully dressed in his usually green suit and vest.

"How did you-" Miki was going to ask how he changed so quickly but decided it wasn't important enough and shrugged. "Nevermind."

"Come on, Kakashi! I'll race you!" Gai wound back to run, but was halted by Miki.

"Oh no you don't!" She chastised him. "Remember? You're in my care. No racing!"

"Lucky for you." Gai smiled at Kakashi.

* * *

The three of them sat together in a booth. Miki didn't mind that her brother was talkative, it kept her from having to speak. She only had to politely nod from time to time.

As her brother went on about his training with Lee to Kakashi, who was probably listening about as much as she was, Miki thought about the scroll again. What type of forbidden jutsu was the spy trying to steal? She regretted breaking the jutsu so quickly during the interrogation. She should have opened it. If the spy had know what type of jutsu he was stealing, it would have revealed itself. But, since they were in his mind and could only know what he knew, if he didn't know what it was it wouldn't have shown.

She knew she would be denied any request for further information on the prisoner she interrogated. She had aided with questioning criminals many times, but this is the first time she was left with questions. That scroll just wouldn't leave her mind, she had to know what it was. She found herself wondering if she could sneak into the Hokage's office to search for it. She shook her head and took a sip of water, that could be considered treason. She would be crazy for even considering it.

"So you two went out on a date last night?" Gai asked loudly.

Miki almost spit her water. She swallowed it quickly instead, choking.

"Oh, no." Kakashi waved his hands half panicked. "We just went out, but not on a date."

Miki was still coughing as she sat next to Gai and unable to answer.

"Oh, so you're too cool for her?" Gai gave Kakashi a death stare from across the table.

Miki composed herself quickly as she smiled coolly. "So what if it was a date, Gai-chan? Then what do you have to say?"

Kakashi leaned back, smiling beneath his mask. He admired how Miki really knew how to push Gai's buttons.

Gai's eye twitched visibly, and he had no verbal response. It was a rarity that Miki had witnessed very few times. She watched her brother fumble mentally for a response with a blank expression until she couldn't stop herself from giggling. Kakashi joined in on the laughter.

"Oh..." Gai sighed in relief. "You're kidding."

She was about to laugh some more at her brother's expense, but then the scroll from earlier rolled across the table. It came to a stop in front of her, then it was gone.

"Miki-chan?" Kakashi tilted his head.

"Excuse me for just a moment." She stood quickly and left before either of them could stop her.

"Wonder what that was all about?" Kakashi stared at her empty seat.

"You probably offended her by not admitting last night was a date!" Gai cut his eyes toward Kakashi.

"Some how, I really doubt its about that." Kakashi shifted his gaze to Gai. "I'll admit I think you're right. Something is definitely going on."

"I'll talk to her." Gai nodded.

Kakashi sat back thoughtfully, recalling yesterday to try to remember anything that might be a clue.

"I should probably talk to her." Kakashi concluded aloud.

"You think you'll get it out of her before her brother does?" Gai's competitive nature with him answered.

Miki returned and sat down quietly next to Gai, all the color drained from her face.

"I hate to ask this, but can you make sure my brother gets home and rests, Kakashi? I have to go back to work. Something came up." Miki rubbed her bandaged hand.

"I can get home, I don't need a babysitter." Gai responded.

Kakashi's body went rigid as he studied her carefully. "I can. Is everything alright?"

"Yeah." Miki replied just above a whisper, not looking at either of them. "They just need me to take a look at a patient that was just admitted." She turned in her seat to Gai and continued. "I'll come by to see you when I'm done."

"Ok." Gai looked at down at his little sister's face. She was afraid of something, he could tell by her paled skin and they way she rubbed her bandaged hand. She wore her blank expression, but Gai knew her well enough to know that she was afraid. She stood back up quickly, faltering for a moment before gaining her balance.

"Ok, see you later. And sorry I had to leave so sudden." Miki turned quickly to leave.

"Miki-chan." Gai stopped her.

"I'll see you soon...love you." She smiled over her shoulder at her brother. She hurried through the crowded restaurant, gathering her strength. She set her jaw in determination as she stepped outside and began walking down the sidewalk.

A man with chestnut colored hair appeared next to her and they continued to walk together.

"This one is a real piece of work from what I know." He kept his eyes forward.

"Aren't they always?" Miki sucked in a deep breath, steeling herself for whatever was waiting for her in the interrogation room.

"Even so, I think this one will surprise you." He replied as they turned down a different path.

"Let's just get this over with." Miki sighed. It was going to be a long afternoon.


	3. Chapter 3

It didn't matter how many times Miki had been in the interrogation room, it always unnerved her. The Anbu had a flair for dramatics she had to admit. The prisoner sat in the center of a dimly lit room, restrained in a chair. An empty chair was across from him, as always for her. Anbu stood around them in a circle, their masks concealing their identity. Miki never wore a mask.

Miki discovered her ability at a young age on accident, a few short years later the Anbu came to her. She was offered a contract because of her rare ability, she was teen at the time and the offer seemed adventurous and exciting to her. Unfortunately, she had no idea what she was getting herself into. Not even Gai knows that she does work for the Anbu when she is called. If she breaths even a word of working with the Anbu, she could be arrested. They had a way of finding out such things.

She thought she was signing up for helping make The Hidden Leaf safer and she still told herself that when echoes kept her awake at night. She had thought of running away a couple of times, but the Anbu isn't exactly something you could run away from.

Miki seated herself across from the prisoner, it was a man with grey eyes. She always noticed the eyes first, because her jutsu required eye contact.

She cleared her throat. "What's your name?"

He smiled, but said nothing. His gaze made chills crawl down her spine, she refrained from shivering. She always gave them a chance to talk before she entered their mind, it gave herself the allusion that they had a choice.

She had been briefed before she arrived. This man was found trying to free the prisoner from yesterday. It was completely foolish and reckless. Were these criminals that stupid or was it part of some sort of rouse? It didn't set well with Miki, it was like they wanted to get caught.

"Who are you working for?" She asked with a polite smile.

The man continued to smile back with cold, dead grey eyes. She swallowed hard, the lump growing in the back of her throat almost made it impossible.

She sighed closing her eyes. Very well, she thought, suit yourself. She concentrated her chakra before opening her eyes and locking on to his. The room melted away from them and she stood in the blankness of his mind, alone.

Alone? Her eyes scanned the darkness. She was the only one here, this had never happened before. She hid her panic behind her default blank expression.

"You can hide if you like, that's ok." She spoke as if she was talking to a child playing hide-and-seek as she continued, "I'll admit, no one has ever tried _this _with me before. I give you points on your creativity."

"Who are you?" The voice was feminine and echoed behind her.

Miki spun quickly, but there was no one there. The voice was clearly a female, but the prisoner was a man. Miki had to take deep breaths and remind herself that even though he was the one in control of his mind, she could break the jutsu at any time. There was nothing for her to fear, he couldn't actually hurt her.

Miki smiled. "Well, come out here and I'll tell you."

It remained silent for a few moments before footsteps began to echo everywhere. It was impossible for Miki to know which direction they were coming from. A woman with black hair and matching eyes stepped into view.

She looked nothing like the prisoner.

"I think the better question is, do _you _know who you are?" The woman smiled dangerously.

Different questions flipped through Miki's mind, why was this woman in this prisoner's mind? Miki had never encountered anything like this before. It didn't add up. Did she use her Jutsu on the wrong person? But that couldn't be it, she was looking directly at the prisoner.

When Miki didn't answer, the woman stepped in closer to her so she could lean over and whisper, "Not what you were expecting, huh?"

Kenchi _did say_ that this prisoner was a real piece of work, but she would have never expected this.

"What did you come here for?" Miki stared at the woman skeptically.

"Oh just a little jutsu that was lost to me a long time ago, but I'm more interested in you." She began to circle around Miki slowly.

Miki watched her carefully, unsure of how to answer. She decided on letting this woman make the first move, then gage her response.

The woman finally continued. "You're the Pysche Ninja of the Hidden Leaf. Its funny but most just think that you're a legend they made up to scare enemies. I was one of them until now."

Miki crossed her arms over her chest. "Yes I am very real." She smiled smugly and decided an insult might jar this guy into revealing his intentions.

Miki snorted. "So are you a drag queen in the physical world or just in your mind?"

The blank setting around them rippled before stabilizing. Miki smiled, that got to him.

"I'm disappointed." The woman flipped her dark hair. "You haven't figured it out yet."

"And I'm disappointed as well, I was told you would be interesting...but you're not." Miki attempted to upset him or her again.

"Try to break this Jutsu of yours." The lady replied smugly. "If you do, I'll gladly tell them anything they want to know."

"Finally," Miki snorted. "I hope you're ready to spill your guts."

Miki broke the jutsu...or tried to. She still remained in the mind of the prisoner, staring at the dark haired woman. Miki tried again...still nothing. The woman threw her head back and cackled with laughter.

"Do I have your attention now?" She sighed smugly.

Miki felt panic begin to rise. Some how she was trapped.

"How?!" Was all Miki could reply with.

"This man is only a vessel." She flashed an icy smile. "I could teach you how to do it. I could also teach you how to get out of your current predicament."

"A vessel?" Miki focused on her curiosity to keep panic at bay. "A vessel for what?"

"To do my will." She answered with open arms.

"And what exactly is that?" Miki's eyes narrowed at her.

"Oh, I'm afraid I can't tell you that yet." She raised an eyebrow. "I'll come for you soon though, in my real body. This is a most interesting turn of events. I snuck in to steal back a prized gem of mine, but I found a more invaluable treasure."

"You stay away from me!" Miki shouted, her hands fisted.

She cupped Miki's face in her hands and continued. "You're going to help me accomplish everything."

"I'm not going to help you with anything!" Miki shoved her away.

"I think you will actually." The woman's face drew into a scowl. "After I show you the truth."

The blank setting around them turned into fire and smoke. The stench of burning flesh filled the air, a chorus of screams pierced her ears. Children screaming, adults shouting made Miki cover her ears.

"Listen to their screams! Do you smell the bodies burning? Open your eyes and look!" The raven haired woman stepped in closer. "Take a good look."

"Stop it! Let me go!" Miki screamed with her ears covered.

"I'll be seeing you soon." The woman's dark smile through the flames was the last image Miki had before she was expelled from the prisoner's mind.

Miki opened her eyes and fell to the floor from her chair in a sweaty heap. The prisoner remained in his chair unmoved.

"What did you do to me?!" Miki screamed. "Answer me!"

Kenchi grabbed Miki's arm, forcing her to stand. She was covered in sweat and shaking uncontrollably. She looked up at Kenchi, his face set in its familiar stern expression. His eyes floated to the other Anbu before coming back to her. He was warning her to remain calm. Miki forced deep calm breaths, before she brushed off Kenchi.

"She-" Miki cleared her throat, the Anbu didn't need to know that part. What if they think she's part of it and they lock her away? "HE is after the same forbidden Jutsu that the prisoner from yesterday was."

Kenchi nodded. "Could you get him to say who he is working for?"

Miki shook her head. "No, it was difficult enough to get that much out of him. Whoever these two work for...is really good. My guess is that neither of these men know exactly who they're working for...their mind will only show me what they know. Perhaps they were hired to steal it and they didn't ask questions? I'm not sure."

"That is definitely a possibility. Thank you for your assistance and as always...we'll be in touch. Go home." Kenchi's voice was firm as he dismissed her.

Miki's legs felt as if they had been stretched to the point of snapping, but she forced herself to walk anyway. She rubbed her nose as she walked, still smelling smoke from the vision. She wasn't so worried about the jutsu anymore, someone was coming after her. Miki stopped. She should tell Kenchi about the woman and her threat to come for her. It would make her look really suspicious though. The Anbu weren't the trusting type...they would probably lock her up "for her own protection." At least she could run or defend herself if someone came after her and she wasn't locked away somewhere.

"Was there something else?" Kenchi called out.

"Um, no sir." Miki answered.

* * *

Miki had just woken up, it was night time outside.

How long was I asleep? She thought to herself. She had come straight home after dealing with the Anbu's request earlier this afternoon. She shuddered when the image of that woman came to her mind. Being in someone's mind was draining, she still felt wobbly as she stood.

Sushi meowed loudly from the bed.

"I'm fine, Sushi." Miki rubbed her temples. "This is just turning out to be a rough week."

The black and white fluffy cat walked to the edge of the bed and tilted his head curiously. Miki reached out and scratched his head. Sushi was really therapeutic for her from time to time. But there wasn't enough therapy in the world right now that could make her headache go away. Her mind was still recovering from the trauma of encountering that woman earlier.

Miki grabbed the kunai blade from her night stand and took it into the bathroom with her. If that woman was coming for her, she wasn't going with her without a fight. Miki undressed quickly and took the kunai with her into the shower and put it on the shelf next to her soap.

The echo came on quickly, she relived the vision of being in the prisoner's mind with that woman who claimed to be using him as a vessel. The screams and flames haunted her as she came back to her senses, knelt on the floor of the shower. She could still smell smoke and her ears buzzed from the screams.

Reaching up, she grabbed the kunai and jabbed it into her thigh. The pain bit hard, but it shook off the images that lingered. Miki grunted half in pain, half from relief. She stared down at the kunai that was sticking out of her thigh and plucked it out. She stood, careful not to put too much pressure on her leg as she turned the shower off.

Someone was knocking on the door. Miki swallowed hard as she stumbled out of the shower and grabbed her robe, shoving the kunai into her pocket. It was probably Kenchi, he must have found out she lied and didn't tell them everything. It could also be the woman who had threatened her earlier. Either way, she felt better having the knife in her pocket.

She looked out her bedroom window and momentarily considered running away. The sound of knocking made her shake her head, no point in running now.

She wrapped the knee length robe around her and tied it as she padded quietly to her front door. Miki held the kunai inside her pocket, as she slowly opened the door half way.

"Kakashi-san?" Miki half exclaimed, squeezing her hand around the concealed kunai.

"Why are you answering the door with a weapon?" Kakashi cocked his head to the side.

Miki sighed, Kakashi was very experienced in combat and she wasn't. The truth sank in...had it been someone with hostile intention, they would have seen her attack coming.

"Oh," Miki faked a laugh showing the blade. "I was...sharpening it."

"There's blood on it." Kakashi snatched it from her hand.

Miki bit her lip, she needed to think of something fast to get rid of him.

"And you're bleeding." Kakashi put the kunai away and pointed down. Miki's eyes followed, blood was beginning to trickle down her leg.

"So I am." Miki's voice wavered, she was running out of explanations. Her brother was easy too fool, but not Kakashi. "I'm clumsy."

"We can either do this the easy way and you talk to me or we can do this the more lengthy difficult way. Either way, I'm not leaving until you tell me why you would lie to me and Gai, and why you are hurting yourself." Kakashi's tone reminded her of Kenchi's.

Afraid that someone might be watching them, she opened the door the rest of the way and gestured for him to come in.

"What do you mean I lied to you?" Miki looked around outside before shutting the door.

Kakashi wondered what she could be so paranoid about, was she checking to see if someone had followed him or was watching them?

"Earlier when you told us you had to go back to work, that was a lie." Kakashi's eye wandered over Miki's exposed neckline at the scars that swirled up to her throat.

"No it wasn't." Miki shook her head.

"Yes it was. I went by the hospital to see you and Dr. Usagi said she hadn't seen you." He pointed to the couch. "Sit down."

Miki sat down without arguing. She didn't feel like she could stand much longer anyway. She watched Kakashi go into the kitchen and come back with a first aid kit. He was familiar with her apartment, having been here a few times before.

"I had to go see a patient at his home." Miki hated lying to her friend, but she could put him in danger if she told him the truth.

"Why are you still lying to me?" Kakashi's voice was stern as he pushed back the hem of her robe enough to expose the stab wound. "And why would you do this to yourself?"

"It was an accident." She winced as he cleaned it.

He looked up at her, his voice hard. "I want the truth."

Miki sighed and looked away from him. "I did it to... to make the vision stop." It was safe to tell him that much, right?

Kakashi was silent as he covered her wound with a bandage. He remained knelt down in front of her, considering her explanation.

"What did you see?" Kakashi's voice softened to his normal tone with her.

"Flames...blood...children screaming." Miki's eyes met his momentarily before she looked away again.

"Where did you go when you left earlier?" Kakashi remained still, listening attentively.

Miki didn't want to tell him a bold face lie, she wouldn't insult him like that. She opened her mouth to answer, then closed it. She wanted to tell him, she wanted to tell him everything.

"Miki-chan." Kakashi moved to sit next to her. "You can tell me anything."

Miki turned to him with a brave smile and resolved to speak the truth. "I can't tell you this. I'm sorry."

"If you think you're protecting me, you're not. Don't be foolish, I know you're smarter than that." Kakashi leaned in closer.

"I could be arrested for treason if I tell you what I know. It's better for both of us if you don't know, I can't be selfish like that." Miki smiled at him, biting her lower lip.

"I told you I wasn't leaving until you tell me." He replied.

Miki knew she could trust Kakashi, she knew he could handle whatever she told him. But she didn't want him to get involved with her situation. What if something happened to him just because she couldn't keep her mouth shut? She already messed up by not telling Kenchi the whole truth. She knew he would find out sooner or later, then she would look even more suspicious for withholding information.

Miki clenched her jaw tight as she looked at her friend. He was waiting for her answer, patiently...his gaze focused on hers. She knew she couldn't lie to him.

"Kakashi-san, please just let it go. I don't want to get you involved. I can handle it." She hardened her expression.

Kakashi pointed at her wound. "It doesn't look like you can handle it. Miki-chan, if you haven't noticed, I _want_ to be involved. I can handle any consequences from knowing and I might even be able to help you, but I refuse to stand by and do nothing." He paused for a moment and continued when she didn't respond. "What if this situation was reversed? How would you feel if I was going through what you are right now?"

Damn, Miki thought. His logic, as always was sound. She would be furious if he refused tell her...and a little hurt. Beneath his placid mask, he was probably boiling with frustration that she wouldn't tell him anything.

"Are you sure?" Miki finally responded, her vision began to cloud with impending tears.

"Absolutely." Kakashi moved closer to her so that they were touching.

"You know about my ability." Miki wasn't sure how to start, there was so much to say.

"Yes." He nodded.

"Well, shortly after I discovered what I could do...The Anbu contacted me." Miki paused and took a deep breath. She had held this in for 9 years.

His uncovered eye went wide and he whispered. "You're in Black Opps?"

"Well, not exactly." She said in a small voice. "I have a contract with them, they can call me at any time to assist in questioning prisoners or suspects. I go inside of the person's mind and look for what they need to know."

"Miki-chan..."Kakashi took her hand. "Why would you agree to that?"

She smiled remembering how young and wild she used to be. "I was young and it sounded exciting, being affiliated with Black Opps. Kenchi made it sound like I would be a hero to the Hidden Leaf. I'm not good at combat like you or Gai. But part of my contract is I can't tell anyone, not even my brother."

Kakashi knew all to well how the Anbu Black Opps operated. He couldn't believe _his_ little Miki was involved with them, no wonder she seemed to be on the verge of a nervous breakdown.

"How old were you when you signed up?" He kept his gaze steady and his voice low, someone could be eavesdropping.

"I was 15." Miki looked down at their intertwined hands.

"You've kept it a secret for that long?" He blinked, completely shocked.

"Yes, yes I did." She smiled, with tears in the corner of her eyes. "Its nice that someone else knows now."

She told him about the minds of the criminals that she had interrogated over the years. She explained to him about the echoes she would experience after she had been in a violent one's mind.

Kakashi listened carefully, asking questions where he wasn't sure. Miki answered every question, feeling more and more unburdened. She felt as though she was gaining back a piece of her sanity that had been taken from her over the years. She told him about the woman that she saw in the mind of the man she was questioning earlier.

"Did she look familiar to you at all?" He asked when she finished.

"No." Miki shook her head. "I have absolutely no idea who she is."

Kakashi admired the inner strength of Miki. He always thought of her as a sweet and kind person. He remembered the first time he met her a few years back, he was actually in the hospital dealing with post traumatic depression. She helped him understand what he was going through and guided him through his recovery. It was his turn to return her kindness and help her through her situation. Kakashi knew he wasn't the best at showing his emotions. He hesitated at first, the motion feeling foreign to him, before he pulled Miki into an embrace.

"We'll figure this out. That woman, if what she said was true, must be in the village somewhere waiting." Kakashi squeezed Miki tighter to him, feeling more confident about his move.

Miki was stiff at first with surprised before she relaxed and hugged him back. He'd never hugged her before, Miki wasn't even sure if she'd ever seen him be physically affectionate to anyone. She suddenly remembered that she was only wearing a thin robe with nothing underneath and began to blush.

"And I can understand why you wouldn't tell them about seeing her." He whispered. "I don't think I would have either."

"I try to listen to my gut on things like that." Miki smiled against his shoulder, still blushing. Even though she had experienced many things mentally, she was still innocent physically. "So what happens now?"

"I'll watch your apartment tonight, so you can rest." He replied rocking them gently. "I'll watch from outside." He added.

"Why don't you just stay inside...with me?" Miki pulled back to look at him, "It would make more sense."

"Ok." Kakashi agreed, it did make more sense. He could watch her much easier that way.

"It's very late, we should probably go to bed." Miki stood up.

Kakashi looked at Miki, noting how exhausted she looked. "I'll keep watch from out here. Go ahead and sleep."

Miki grabbed his hand and tugged at him. "You need sleep too. Just sleep in my room with me, you'll wake up if something happens."

Kakashi wasn't shy, but he hesitated. She had to have some clue of how he felt about her, even Gai had picked up on it. He decided her idea of sleeping together was the best solution. It would be a lot easier to keep her safe if he stayed next to her all night, but it would also be tempting.


	4. Chapter 4

Miki's eyes snapped open, dreams of a woman with black hair and cold eyes had woke her. She sat up slowly, so she wouldn't wake Kakashi. Sushi had positioned himself in between the two of them. He and Kakashi were both still sound asleep.

She rubbed her bare arms, it was a cool rainy morning. She had worn her usual light nightshirt and shorts to bed. Had she known it was going to be a chilly morning, she would have dressed a little warmer.

Miki smiled as she watched him sleep, his face completely uncovered. It'd been so long since she'd seen his face she almost had forgotten what he looked like. The first time she met him, he was in the hospital suffering from severe anxiety attacks shortly after the death of his teammate. At that time, she was still learning about the brain and how to perfect her ability to examine a person's mind.

The first time she entered his mind, it was a tangled mess of violence and guilt. It had taken her a few times before she could find him in the midst of it all. She knew more about Kakashi than she would ever let him know.

The first time he saw her scars peeking out of her shirt, he didn't look at her with pity. When he had asked her how she got the scars, her explanation to him was short and direct; she was one of many that was injured during the nine tails' rampage. She remembered grinding her teeth in anticipation of him saying something stupid like what a shame it was that happened to her beautiful skin or gush like an idiot saying how sorry he was that happened to her, like many other had responded in the past. Instead he just shrugged and said terrible things happen everyday. The nurse that was with the two of them thought he was cold and rude for saying that. Miki thought it was the best response; it was truthful.

She looked at him now, asleep next to her. She reached out, not thinking, and was about to touch his cheek. He moved quicker than her eyes could follow, Sushi bolted from the bed searching for safety. From her point of view, Kakashi appeared on top of her, pinning her hands above her head.

He was so close to her, their noses almost touched. Her senses were hyper aware of their closeness, his body pressed on top of hers.

"Miki-chan, I'm sorry. It was a reflex." He spoke softly.

"It's ok, I should have been more careful waking you up." She bit her bottom lip nervously, her cheeks reddening.

Kakashi was about to lose complete control. She was looking up at him through long eye lashes and flushed cheeks. He could feel her heart beating hard against his as their breaths mingled together. He had dreams of being close to her like this. He wasn't sure if she would ever want to be with him, she had seen inside his mind at his worse. He was in a dark place in his life when they met. Maybe she could still look at him with tenderness because she'd seen worse than him or maybe she looked at him this way because he was the worse.

Miki stared up at Kakashi, wondering what his next move was going to be. She tried to keep her breathing steady, what if he didn't feel the same way she did? In the years they'd known each other, he never showed any signs of wanting more than just friendship. Truth be told, she didn't feel like she was worthy of being in a dating relationship with anyone. Being involved with the underhandedness of the Black Opps wasn't exactly when men looked for in a girlfriend or the ability to go through their memories, thoughts, and dreams. The very few men who had expressed interest in her were either scared off by Gai or found her scars (physical and mental) to be too much baggage.

No, she thought, there's no way he sees me as anything other than a friend at most.

They remained frozen in place, searching each other's eyes for answers. Kakashi's grip on her wrists finally loosened. Miki anticipated on him getting up, but instead he touched her cheek tenderly. He tilted his head, his good eye half closed. Miki sighed and closed her eyes, waiting for the moment.

Kakashi moved away from her so suddenly, she felt air rush across her lips. She sat up quickly, looking at him curiously. He was facing the doorway, with his mask back on. She wondered quietly to herself how he could move so fast.

"Someone is about to knock." His voice steady and focused.

She swung her legs over the side of the bed and stood. "I'll go see who it is."

"Wait." He turned around to face her.

"What is it?" Miki cocked her head to the side.

Kakashi looked at her, taking in the sight of her. Her dark hair was ruffled down to her waist, her skin still flushed from their almost kiss. His eyes followed the scars that climbed up her arm, disappeared into her shirt and crawled up to her neck. She wasn't beautiful in spite of her scars, she was beautiful because of her scars.

The sound of the door knocking brought him back as he nodded at her. He watched her glide across the bedroom and into her living room. She may be a medic ninja, but she moved with great stealth that came naturally to her better than some of the elite ninja he knew. It was almost as if her footsteps never touch the floor. He followed behind her quietly and moved away from view before she opened the door. He highly doubted the woman she spoke of would bother knocking, but he wanted to be cautious regardless.

Miki smoothed her hair a bit before opening the door, the sound of rain gently humming followed.

"Gai!" Miki exclaimed, surprised to see her brother. "What are you doing out in this weather?"

She grabbed him by the vest and pulled him inside, slamming the door behind him.

"It'll take more than rain to-" Gai noticed Kakashi before he finished his sentence. He looked over at him, then back at Miki and then back over at him. "Uh..."

Kakashi scratched the back of his head with his eye closed happily. "What's up, Gai?"

Gai looked back at Miki, who was blushing uncontrollably, then back at Kakashi...his eyes narrowed thoughtfully on him for a few minutes before he shifted his gaze back to Miki.

"Did you two...?" Gai cleared his throat, the vein on his forehead bulging.

"No no no no." Miki shook her head, her face bright red.

Gai looked over at Kakashi, his gaze telling him to confess.

"I stopped by early this morning." He shrugged an answer.

Miki shook off her nervous energy as her skin began to go back to its usual color. Gai had always been particularly touchy when it came to her dating life, but this wasn't just any guy. This was his eternal rival as Gai loved to refer to him. She smiled to herself, Kakashi could handle a confrontation with her brother.

"Yeah, he just got here a minute before you did." Miki smiled with her usual composure. She needed to redirect the attention back on Gai or he would ask more questions. "So what brings my favorite brother to see me so early?"

Gai's face lit up at the acknowledgment, his little sister knew how to pull on his heart strings. He patted her on the head. "I was checking on you. You never came by yesterday."

"Oh," Miki blinked hard as he patted her head. She hated it when he did that, patted her like a child. She caught his hand. "I wasn't feeling well after I checked in on my patient...so I just came back home and went to bed early. I'm sorry, I should have checked in with you."

"I'll forgive you this time." He gave his signature smile.

"However." Miki crossed her arms over chest tightly and looked at him sternly. "You should be at home resting!"

"I've had plenty of rest and I heal really quick." He gave her a thumbs up. "I already told Lee, Neji, and Tenten our training resumes tomorrow!"

"Wow." Miki's composure relaxed. "You're actually going to take today off? Good. I was going to put you back in the hospital myself if you didn't."

Gai smiled smugly. "More like I gave _them_ the day off...they're going to need it for the training I have in store for them."

Miki sighed. "Well, since you two are here... How about I make us all some breakfast?"

"That sounds great!" Gai cheered. Miki snorted a laugh, his positive energy was always great to have around.

Kakashi smiled and nodded in agreement. He was glad to know that she was a good cook.

"I'm going to go change first. You guys just make yourself at home." Miki watched with a smile as Gai was already thumbing through her book shelf. She knew Gai wasn't much of a reader, but he was the type of person that had to constantly be busy doing _something._

Miki looked over at Kakashi and smirked before leaving the room.

"So what's the deal with you two?" Gai said just as soon as she was gone, his eyes cutting to him.

Kakashi sat down on the couch. "What do you mean?"

Gai turned around and propped himself against the book shelf. "I'm not blind. It definitely felt like I walked in on the middle of something."

"Like what?" Kakashi's voice was cool and nonchalant.

Gai shifted uncomfortably. "Aw man, don't make me say it!"

Kakashi smiled under his mask a few moments before he decided to give Gai an explanation. "I heard Miki wasn't feeling well, so I stopped to check on her for you on my way to the training grounds this morning. As you can see, it was raining, so she invited me in."

"Oh." Gai exhaled deeply in relief. "Not that it would be a bad thing if you did want to uh...get involved with little Miki."

Kakashi cleared his throat, he always did his best to steer clear of this conversation with Gai.

"Just know that if you ever broke her heart or even cracked it...You will get the beating of your life." Gai used his usual dramatic tone as he shook his fist at him.

"I wouldn't dream of it, Gai." Kakashi stifled a laugh by clearing his throat again.

Miki reappeared in her usual green long sleeved shirt and black shorts. Her hair was tied back in a pony tail that swayed with her movements. Sushi followed behind her, meowing loudly to announce their presence.

Gai jumped, almost knocking over the book shelf as he exclaimed, "I forgot that THING lives with you!"

Miki giggled as she picked up the cat. "Aw, Come on Gai! Its just Sushi."

"Can't you put him in your room or something?" Gai backed up from them, uneasy.

"But he's so happy to see you!" Miki followed her brother with a mischievous grin, Sushi meowing in her arms.

"Miki! I'm not kidding!" Gai's voice hit a pitch that Kakashi had never heard come out of him before.

He watched Miki pick on Gai with the cat and chuckled to himself. It was cute the way she teased her older brother.

"Pet him! He missed you!" Miki sung as she held Sushi out to Gai.

"He may have missed me last time!" Gai pointed accusingly at the cat. "But his aim will eventually improve! And I won't be held responsible for what I do when that monster attacks."

Sushi meowed pitifully as Miki hugged the cat close to her. "Aw, you hurt his feelings."

"Good!" Gai stuck his tongue out at the cat.

She set the cat down gently. "Go on into the kitchen, Sushi. Gai doesn't want to play with you." Miki stuck her tongue out at her brother as she followed the cat into the kitchen to make them breakfast.

Kakashi's muffled chuckles made it to Gai's ears. He spun around and glared at him. Even his laugh was cool, he thought to himself with a closed fist. "What's so funny?"

Kakashi shrugged. "Nothing..." He paused. "Scaredy cat."

Gai sucked in a deep breath. "I'm not afraid of the cat."

"Sure you're not." Kakashi teased him.

* * *

Kakashi watched Miki from a distance as he hid in a tree, he had a perfect view of her office window from here. She had insisted that she didn't need him to watch over her at work. She told him that it would be foolish for the dark lady to come after her at the hospital, too many witnesses. Kakashi knew she was right about that, but he also knew Miki was a creature of habit. She would be easy to stalk because she stuck to a basic daily routine with only a few variances.

He thought about going to Lady Tsunade and telling her about the threat made against Miki, but then Black Opps would find out she withheld information. And Kakashi knew how that would go over with them.

Still, he thought maybe following her secretly would reveal to him if anyone else was. She left for work earlier this morning even after he suggested she take the day off. She only replied with her patients needed her and that if she didn't have something to take her mind of that woman she would lose her own mind.

At the time he agreed with her and told her that he would meet her at the hospital at the end of her shift. He considered telling Gai about his sister's predicament, but as noble as his intentions usually are, he would probably do something foolish.

He watched as Miki leaned forward at her desk and rubbed her eyes before pushing her chair back to stand up. She looked drained from the busy day and it was time for her to be off duty now. She ran her hands through her hair before picking up her bag and moving out of view.

That was Kakashi's cue, he moved quickly from the tree and appeared near the entrance to the hospital. He opened the door as Miki was reaching for it. Her eyes widen in surprise before she smiled at him.

"Hi." Her voice was low as she continued to walk.

"Looks like you got finished early, I was just coming up to meet you." Kakashi walked next to her.

"Oh." She replied as she picked up the pace. He matched it, keeping up with her.

"Is something wrong, Miki-chan?" Kakashi looked at her suspiciously. Was she uncomfortable with him because of this morning? She seemed fine when he and Gai walked her to work this morning. Then again, maybe she didn't want to say anything to him in front of her brother.

Miki only shook her head no and gave him a small smile.

"If its about this morning-" He started.

She shook her head swiftly and gave him a shy smile as she whispered. "Tired."

Miki was acting very strange, he thought to himself. Something about her is off... He couldn't quite place what it was. She seemed impatient and in a hurry, it was very uncharacteristic of her. He watched the way she walked, like she was about to break into a run at any moment. She always moved with such grace and stealth, she was one of the few that could sneak up on him.

She looked up at him and gave him a little smile before looking back ahead again.

"Miki-chan." He reached for her wrist, but she ran.

He stood still a moment, shocked that she bolted like that. Was she having some sort of mental break down? The shock wore off and he came to his senses.

"Miki-Chan!" He ran after her.

She ran around a corner ahead, he turned the corner in time to see her go down an alley. She stopped at the dead end, without turning around.

"Miki-chan. Why did you run like that?" Kakashi approached her cautiously.

Her shoulders began to shake as deep laughter escaped her lungs.

Kakashi clenched his teeth, how could he have been so stupid. He should have seen straight through this. He threw a kunai at the imposter. The imposter turned around and caught it as the disguise went away with a poof. A man dressed in black with bright red spikey hair and blue eyes appeared.

"Where's Miki?" Kakashi glared at him.

The man shrugged as he threw his hand up and disappeared in a cloud of smoke. The kunai fell to the pavement with a _clink!_

Damn it! Kakashi thought as he ran back to the hospital, the real Miki could still be close and he may be able to get her back if he hurried.


	5. Chapter 5

**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or any of the characters.**

**Author note: I hope you guys are enjoying this as much as I enjoyed writing it:) This is the first fanfic I have ever wrote. I work between 60-70 hours a week so it gets tough to post often. I wish I could post everyday! I'll be posting the next chapter very soon. **

Miki walked next to Kakashi, they were getting closer to the edge of the village. He told her when he met her at the hospital that he wanted to speak with her in private. Maybe he was worried someone from Black Opps would somehow hear their conversation, its not a bad idea to be paranoid when it came to those guys. Or...she thought to herself as she swallowed hard, maybe he wanted to speak to her about this morning. Maybe he was making some sort of romantic gesture, she thought.

They were just outside of the village, crossing over a meadow when she heard a familiar voice calling to them.

"Kakashi-san! Miki-chan!" Gai came barelling across the field towards them.

"Hey!" Miki called as she waved at him.

Kakashi said nothing as he sighed and propped his hand on his hip. He mumbled something under his breath that Miki didn't hear. Was he irriated?

"What are you two doing out here?" Gai raised a bushy eyebrow.

Kakashi remained silent and straightened as he stared at Gai.

"Oh, I was going to do some training so that I don't get rusty. Kakashi volunteered to help me out." Miki replied with a wink.

"Is that right?" Gai's eyes went wide with excitement. "It's great to see you do something other than sit behind a desk all day, Miki! And Kakashi could use the exercise, seeing that he isn't very busy these days."

"What do you mean I could use the exercise?!" Kakashi shrieked. His voice sounded higher than normal.

Gai held up his hands. "Whoa! I didn't mean to offend you. I was just saying, you don't have Naruto around to keep you as active as you have been. That's all I meant. When did you get so sensitive?"

Miki changed the subject quickly. "So what are you doing out here, Gai?"

"I was training with my students. We have to train especially hard for them to pass the next exams." Gai gave a thumbs up. "They're going to do great!"

"You are a great teacher." Miki complimented him with a proud smile.

"Well, I could come with you and give you some pointers as well." Gai offered.

"That won't be necessary." Kakashi snapped impatiently.

Miki and Gai exchanged confused glances before she smiled apologetically to her brother.

"I'll catch up with you later, ok Gai?" She gave her brother a tight hug.

"What's his deal?" Gai whispered.

"I'm not sure." She whispered as she wondered the same thing. "Maybe he's irritated because you brought up Naruto and he misses him?"

Gai's eyes began to tear up as he thought of how he would feel if Rock Lee had left to train with someone else. He should not have mentioned Naruto, he thought to himself. He blinked away the tears quickly before letting his sister go.

"Ok Miki." Gai smiled big, speaking loudly. "And go easy on Kakashi, ok?" He teased as he patted her on the head. Oh how she hated it when he patted her on the head like a child.

"I'll do my best." She smiled with clenched teeth.

They watched Gai walk away before she turned to Kakashi. "Are you alright, Kakashi-chan?

He nodded, running his fingers through his silver hair. "I'm fine. We're almost there."

Miki let him walk ahead as she followed a few steps behind him. Kakashi had never shown any sign of impatience in all of the time that she knew him...and with Naruto as one of his students, that was saying a lot. She'd never seen him snap at anyone before, not even in a stressful situation.

Her suspicious dark eyes followed him as they entered the woods. His hips swayed back and forth momentarily before he forced a more controlled stride.

"Hey Kakashi-chan." She called, a few steps behind him.

"Hmmm?" He answered over his shoulder, continuing to walk.

"Its funny how Gai's afraid of my dog, isn't it?" She forced a giggle.

"Yeah." He chuckled.

Miki swallowed hard as she reached into her bag and felt for the handle of the kunai. In one fluid moment, she pulled it from her back and threw it. It was a direct hit, the kunai stuck in the Kakashi imposter's back. The disguise fell away with a _poof_!

Miki was now looking at the back of a woman with long dark hair. The dark hair woman swore as she plucked the blade from her back and threw it to the ground, blood drops splashing on the ground.

"You." Miki took a defensive stance.

The dark haired lady laughed deeply as she turned around slowly. "I was never really good at disguises like Rowan."

"Who are you?" Miki quickly averted her gaze to the woman's feet. She knew from meeting her last time that this woman had abilities much like her own. She would have to avoid eye contact to keep her out of her mind.

"Clever girl, didn't anyone ever teach you its impolite to avoid eye contact?" The woman laughed in amusement.

"Yeah, and stealing forbidden jutsu is polite." Miki replied sarcastically.

"It's not stealing if it was mine in the first place." The woman growled.

"Maybe it was taken away from you for a reason." Miki smiled.

"That's a matter of the Hidden Leaf's opinion." The woman's voice oozed with that sickeningly sweet tone that Miki recognized. "My name is Nami. You and I have a lot to talk about."

Miki snorted. "What do you want?"

Nami moved quickly, she was suddenly standing toe to toe with Miki.

"Just you." Nami whispered.

* * *

Gai was finally back in the village, he had taken the long way back from the training grounds. He saw it as a test of endurance and, of course he passed. He was almost half way home when he saw Kakashi running towards him.

Kakashi? Gai thought to himself, how did he get here so quickly? And where is Miki? Kakashi is defintely the fastest ninja that Gai knew, but there was no way he was that fast.

"How did you get back here so fast?" Gai called to Kakashi as he approached.

"You just saw me?!" Kakashi's uncovered eye was wide. "Where?"

Gai was confused. "Are you lost?"

Kakashi fought the urge to face palm. "Where did you just see me?"

"On my way back from training, you were with Miki." Gai scratched his head. "What sort of training did you do to achieve such great speed?! You have to tell me! Did you train with weights? Or was it-"

Kakashi interrupted him as he spoke coolly. "That wasn't me with your sister, Gai. Tell me where you saw them."

"If that wasn't you, then who the hell was that?" Gai narrowed his eyes.

"Long story short, someone is after Miki. This person has a partner and he disguised himself as her to distract me. The other person must have done the same with Miki, pretending to be me." Kakashi quickly explained.

"Little Miki is in trouble?!" Gai cracked his knuckles.

"Yes." Kakashi sighed. "Where did you see them?"

"Follow me!" Gai turned and sped off.

As Gai ran ahead of Kakashi leading the way, the realization of what was happening began to sink in. Someone in the disguise of Kakashi was with little Miki at this very moment leading her into a trap. Worst case scenarios began to play through his head at the fear of the unknown. Why would anyone want to hurt his little sister? His hands clenched as he ran faster, Kakashi was at his heels matching his speed.

He remembered the promise he had made to his sister after the Nine Tails attack that happened a little over a decade ago. She was laying in a hospital bed, covered in bandages. The medic ninja working on her told him it didn't look good for her. They never knew their mother and they had just lost their father recently...they were all each other had. He remembered when his father had sacrificed his own life for Gai and his teammates. His last words to Gai were, 'take care of your sister.'

Gai had refused to leave his sister's side, even to have his own wounds treated. She had ran into a burning building to save other children that were trapped inside. He was told a burning beam had fallen on her, crushing her and leaving her badly burned. That was his little sister, always putting others before herself. He was proud of her bravery that day even as he feared he would lose her. He spend that entire night at her side praying that she would pull through. He wasn't ready to lose the last of his family.

She was only 10 years old at the time, he was 14. He promised multiple times, whispering to her while she remained unconscious that he would make sure she never had to risk her life ever again if she just pull through. He remembered he wanted to challenged death himself that night for his sister's life. Thanks to the skill of the medic ninja, she survived.

"Hey, Gai." Kakashi called softly. "Don't under estimate her."

"I know she's strong, but she's also out numbered." Gai pushed himself to run faster, hoping that Kakashi didn't notice the mist of tears that followed him. He wasn't ready to lose her when they were kids and he wasn't ready to lose her now.

"We'll be there soon. She can hold her own till we get there." Kakashi reassured Gai as well as himself. He knew that Miki was very capable and stronger than Gai could possibly know. Kakashi knew that she had to have gone through Black Opps training in order to be in any kind of contract with them. It was no doubt they had tortured her to train her not to give out information should she ever be captured. It was one of the most gruesome parts of training.

Kakashi didn't doubt that she could hold her own in a typical battle, but this wouldn't be a typical battle. He knew that the woman had the same abilities that Miki has, but it was still unknown what the woman's partner was capable of. Miki could probably handle the woman alone, but the partner was a wild card.


	6. Chapter 6

Standing toe to toe with Nami wasn't how Miki wanted to spend her evening.

"Well that's too bad..." Miki began to concentrate chakra to her hands. "Because you're not getting me."

"I was really hoping we could skip this part." Nami replied sweetly.

"And I was really hoping I wouldn't run into you. It just goes to show you...we don't always get what we hope for." Miki moved quickly, aiming a punch at Nami's gut. She was being especially careful to keep her eyes on Nami's feet so that she wouldn't be caught in her mind jutsu.

Unfortunately, Namie was much faster. She dodged Miki's attack, moving to the side before countering with a swift knee to Miki's stomach, forcing all of her air out along with some blood. Nami grabbed a handful of Miki's hair and forced her to look up at her. Miki clenched her eyes closed as she punched blindly, connecting with Nami's chin.

She opened her eyes quickly and scanned the ground for Nami's feet. She must be in one of the trees above me, Miki thought to herself.

"The Leaf destroyed my village and until now I thought Rowan and I were the only survivors." Nami's voice echoed. Miki focused to try to determine Nami's location.

"The Leaf would never do anything like that!" Miki shouted, keeping her eyes on the ground. She needed to keep Nami talking so she could find her location.

"Just ask the Uchiha clan. I'm sure they'd disagree." Nami's voice was no longer sweet, it was harsh and bitter.

"Well, at least people have heard of the Uchiha clan. I've never heard of a village of psyche ninjas that was destroyed and probably because such a thing never existed." Miki picked up the blood stained kunai from the ground.

"Because they feared us enough to erase us from history. Its forbidden in the Leaf to even speak of Kosome." Nami answered as leaves in the tree to the right rustled.

Miki turned in that direction in time to be face to face with Nami. She quickly averted her gaze to the ground and pointed the kunai at Nami's chest.

"You're lying." Miki held the kunai firmly.

"Look inside of my mind if you don't believe me." Nami rested her hand on Miki's shoulder gently.

Miki kept her gaze on Nami's feet, a bead of sweat trickled down her neck. Why would everyone lie to her? She didn't want to believe the Hidden Leaf would do something so terrible. The people of the Hidden Leaf were generally good natured, she thought. Then she remembered her training with Black Opps...there was a dark side. They didn't always do the most virtuous work, but it was always in the name of protecting the village. Miki shuddered as doubt crept in, how far would they go? Would they be so paranoid to destroy an entire village and wipe it completely away from history?

"It's a terrible thing..." Nami's voice was sad.

"A terrible lie." Miki whispered.

"You know as well as I that memories don't lie...look into my eyes. Find your answers." Nami's hand glided down Miki's shoulder and she put her hand over the kunai. "I will leave you in peace afterwards."

"Why should I trust you?" Miki shuddered.

"Because I'm trying to set things right again." Nami brought her other hand under Miki's chin.

"I don't believe you." Miki closed her eyes.

Nami raised Miki's chin so that they would be face to face. "See for yourself. I won't fight you."

"And you'll leave afterwards?" Miki asked, her eyes still closed.

"If that's what you want." Nami replied gently.

Nami was right about one thing that Miki could trust, memories don't lie. It wouldn't hurt anything to look at Nami's memories to see if her claims held any truth. The fear that they did made Miki's hands tremble. She took in a deep breath, weighing her options. After a few moments of consideration, she concluded the best option would be to hear Nami out and then hope that she kept to her word that she would leave.

Miki dropped the kunai and opened her dark eyes. "Show me."

Nami's dark smile silently answered as the scene around them faded and a new one blurred into focus. They were in a meadow, tall grass blowing in the summer breeze.

"Where are we?" Miki looked around the green fields.

"Just outside of Kosom...this is where I was when-" Nami's voice drifted as she looked into the direction of the smoke.

"What is that?" Miki squinted at the smoke above the trees in the distance.

"Our village." Nami stood next to Miki.

Miki ran, pushing herself through the green fields towards the smoke. She entered the woods, twigs snapping beneath her sandals as she propelled herself faster. Nami had to be lying, the Leaf wouldn't destroy an entire village...kill innocent people. She was approaching the end of the forest when Nami appeared in front of her. Miki stopped in front of her.

"Remember, this is only a memory...you can only see the things that I saw." Nami explained as she guided Miki to a bush near the edge of the woods. "This is where I watched. I'm ashamed to say that I was too afraid to show myself to them. I was only a child at the time though."

"Nami..." Miki swallowed the sympathy that she didn't want to have for this woman.

"Watch." Nami pointed outside of the woods.

Miki could already smell the smoke as she squatted down next to Nami and looked in the direction she pointed. The village of Kosome was on fire, people that ran from their homes were being cut down by ninja that moved to quickly to see.

"How do you know the Leaf was responsible?" Miki whispered, even though this was just a memory and no one could actually hear them.

"Keep watching." Nami whispered.

Miki kept her gaze on the burning village as the people's screams filled the air. She wanted to break the jutsu, to leave the horrible scene. But, she had agreed to see Nami's memory. After some time, the screams became less until gradually it turned into silence. The only sound was the fire crackling as the village continued to burn. Six figures began to emerge from the smoke, Miki squinted as they slowly came into view.

A familiar symbol on their headbands made Miki's breath catch in her throat. They were from the leaf village. She blinked away the tears that stung her eyes. She thought was she was feeling was betrayal until she recognized one of the ninjas walking away from the village. Miki brought her hand over her mouth to keep from screaming.

"What is it?" Nami grabbed her arm.

"That's-" Miki bit her lip as she watched the familiar man with dark hair and bushy eyebrows come into clearer focus. He was carrying something in his arms.

"What?" Nami gripped her arm tighter.

Miki swallowed audibly. "That's my dad."

"You mean the man that kidnapped you!" Nami hissed as she glared at him through the bushes.

"No." Miki whispered.

Nami gently put her arm around Miki. "I'm sorry you had to find out this way."

"Stop it!" Miki shoved her away as she broke the jutsu. "I don't want to see anymore."

They were back in the woods, just outside of the Leaf village. It was almost completely dark outside now, the stars were beginning to come out. Miki's knees trembled, threatening to give way. Nami reached out to her, but Miki slapped her hand away. She wobbled a few moments before she was able to steady herself.

"I don't believe any of it!" Miki shouted.

"It's the truth...think about it. The abilities you have are very unique, only the people of Kosome can do what you do. And you are capable of so much more, I could show you so many things. Come with me." Nami extended her hand to her. "Its where you truly belong."

Too many emotions coursed through Miki, her heart broke at the realization that her entire life was a lie. Her father wasn't who she thought he was, he was a murderer, a kidnapper, and a liar. And the village that she had fought to protect, lost pieces of her sanity over, and had permanent scars from...that same village was responsible for the destruction of her home. Her abilities had always separated her from others. When she was a child, her classmates called her a freak of nature and in her young adult years, the ones that knew of her abilities feared her. It was comforting to finally meet someone just like her and yet she felt connections to the leaf she couldn't ignore.

"I know you're conflicted, but we can sort it out together. Don't let them continue to use you as a tool... a means to an end. What you have is a beautiful gift, not a curse." Nami stepped closer to Miki.

Miki took a step back. "You promised you would leave."

"You still want me to?" Nami clenched her fists.

"Yes, please." Miki whispered.

A man with wild red hair appeared next to Nami. "Nami, we have to go."

Miki watched the two of them exchange glances before they looked at her.

"If you change your mind..." Nami smiled wistfully. "Meet us back here at dawn."

Miki was about to tell Nami she would never change her mind, but she and the red haired man disappeared. Miki's eyes floated over to the blood stained kunai on the ground. She walked over to it and knelt down to pick it up. She picked up the blade and wiped the blood off on the grass before putting it in her bag. She wanted to believe that Nami's memory was all a fabricated lie, that she wasn't a part of the gruesome scene she just witnessed. However, she knew that Nami was right... memories don't lie. It did make sense that she wasn't actually related to Gai and their father. Neither of the men could use jutsu, they could only use tiajutsu. Physically, the only resemblance they had were dark hair and eyes.

Miki stood and sighed at her emotional dilemma. Her thoughts of running away in the past came to mind, maybe she had constantly thought of it because she didn't belong here. She wasn't sure if it was fatigue from using so much chakra that made her feel so heavy or the weight of the truth she just learned. She stumbled forward and was about to shout for Nami to come back.

"Miki!" Gai shouted in the distance behind her.

Miki stopped, she leaned against the tree for support. She wiped away the blood from her lips with her sleeve as racing thoughts began to take over. How could she face her brother now? Did he know all this time? Was he just lying to her as well? He wasn't even really her brother, did she have a real brother or sister out there some where?

Gai stood next to her. "Are you alright?" His eyes widened at the blood on the ground.

"Don't worry, its not my blood." Miki's voice was distant.

"What happened?" Kakashi stook next to Gai.

Miki pushed herself up from the tree and began to walk in the direction of the village. "She just wanted to talk. Nothing happened."

"It doesn't look like _nothing_ happened." Gai pointed at the blood.

Miki ignored him and kept walking past him and Kakashi. How could they not have told her about what the Leaf had done to her people? But then again, maybe they didn't know about it. What did her people do that made the Leaf fear them enough to destroy them and wipe them from history? Miki had so many questions about herself and about where she came from...and only one person could answer them. Was she really considering meeting with Nami in the morning?

"Miki?" Gai called to her, she could hear the panic in his voice. Real brother or not, she still didn't want him to worry about her.

Miki turned to him and Kakashi and smiled. "I'm sorry...I'm just tired."

"Who were they?" Gai asked, his bushy eyebrows furrowed together.

Miki looked out into the woods. "I'm not sure."

"Did she say what she wanted?" Kakshi asked.

"She just wanted to talk to me." Miki turned away from them, towards the village.

"What did she want to talk about?" Kakashi tilted his head curiously.

"Memories." Miki began walking towards the village.

"Memories?" Gai caught up next to her.

"Yeah... I saw inside her mind." Miki clenched her fists. Gai looked so much like the man she just saw walking away from the burning village, carrying her as a baby. Her eyes began to sting as tears threatened to surface.

Gai grabbed her shoulder and turned her to face him. "What did you see?!"

Miki narrowed her eyes. "Why are you so concerned? Do you have something to hide from me?"

Gai stepped back from his sister. He'd never seen that look in her eyes before, she was angry with him. She'd been irritated with him before, but never angry. Gai suddenly wondered if maybe this was an imposter, one to distract them from saving the real Miki.

"What's wrong with you?" Gai asked.

"Nothing." Miki replied quietly. "I'm just tired."

Gai cocked an eyebrow. "Where is the real Miki?"

"What?" Miki's voice squeaked. "I am the real Miki."

"He has a point." Kakashi stepped up next to Gai.

Miki forced a deep breath, it wasn't like the two of them were the ones she just saw in Nami's awful memory. She wished she could tell herself it was all a lie, but there wasn't any way that it couldn't be true. Nami wouldn't have known what her Dad looked like. That part of the whole scene is what caught Miki's attention. But she had to remind herself that Gai and Kakashi had nothing to do with it.

"Just use your sharingan. If I'm an imposter, then you'll see through it." Miki shrugged.

Kakashi moved his headband, uncovering his scarred eye that held the sharingan. After a few moments, he covered his eye and nodded.

Miki rolled her eyes and turned. She began walking towards the village again. Her chest felt tight and her hands were starting to tingle. Gai and Kakashi were talking behind her, but she couldn't hear them over the ringing in her ears. Her steps faltered as they walked out of the woods, Gai caught her by the arm before she fell.

She looked up at Gai, she felt her heart sink to her stomach. Why couldn't it all be a lie? She loved him so much, he was the only family she had.

"Do you love me?" Miki sniffed, she hated the tears that pooled in the corners of her eyes.

"That's a silly question." Gai replied with a big smile as he picked her up to carry her. "You know I do."

Miki leaned against him as he began to walk. "What if I wasn't your sister?"

"How hard did you get hit?" Gai laughed.

"What if you found out I'm not really your sister?" Miki forced her eyes open to stay conscious.

Gai snorted. "Now that is a crazy question."

"Just answer me." Miki sighed through half closed eyes.

"You'll always be my little sister. You're stuck with me." Gai answered.

"Good..." Miki opened her eyes again.

"You can go to sleep, little Miki. I got you." Gai reassured her.

"I'm not tired." Miki mumbled before she fell asleep.

Gai and Kakashi walked in silence until they reached the village.

"That mind jutsu uses a lot of chakra." Kakashi commented.

"Yeah." Gai answered. He wondered why she wanted to know how he would feel if he found out they weren't brother and sister.

"Hey Gai." Miki said lazily.

"Yeah?" He answered.

"Tell Kakashi he should switch to an eye patch." She mumbled with her eyes still closed.

Gai snorted a laugh as he looked at Kakashi. "I'll be sure to tell him."

"Is she talking in her sleep?" Kakashi laughed softly.

"Yeah. She does that some times." Gai chuckled. "She's said some really crazy stuff before. So... are you going to get an eye patch?"

"Never." Kakashi replied.


	7. Chapter 7

**Author note: Just wanted to put a disclaimer out there that this chapter contains smut/lemon/whatever you want to call it. I attempted to be a little more emotional in this chapter. Hope you enjoy!**

Miki sat up quickly, she felt confused at first that she was on the couch in her apartment. Then she remembered Gai carrying her because she had used too much chakra. A full day of working with patients and then having to deal with Nami had left her completely drained. Nami! Was there still time to meet her? Miki looked over to window and sighed in relief to see that it was still dark outside.

"You're awake?" Kakashi had been sitting in the chair by the bookshelf, reading.

"Yeah." Miki rubbed her head, a headache was coming on. She knew she would see an echo of Nami's mind. The memory had been a particularly violent and emotional experience for both of them. She felt the heaviness in her heart return as she remembered seeing the man she thought was her Dad walking away from the burning village with her as a baby in his arms. He wasn't her Dad and Gai wasn't her brother. Miki hugged her knees to her chest as reality began to sink back in.

"Who's Nami?" Kakashi closed his book and leaned forward.

"Huh?" Miki kept her gaze distant.

"You called for someone in your sleep...Nami." He stood and moved over to the couch to sit next to her.

"Nami..."Miki whispered as she hugged her knees to her chest tighter. Then she looked up at Kakashi. "Where's Gai?"

"He went to report a kidnapping attempt." He craned his neck down to try to meet her gaze.

"Oh." Miki sighed. When she saw Gai again, she would have to tell him the truth. "What time is it?"

"About 11. You haven't been asleep very long. Maybe you should try going back to sleep." His eye closed happily.

Miki swallowed hard as the pain because to grow in her temples. She was going to see it again. She slowly lifted her eyes to Kakashi. "I'm about to see it again."

"See what?" He asked.

"Nami, the dark lady, she showed me something earlier...a memory. It was a particularly bad memory. I'm about to see it again, intense visions or memories I see in people's minds always come back to me." Miki unhugged her knees and leaned back into the couch. "I don't know why it happens. Maybe when I go in someone's mind, part of it stays with me and an echo is its way of getting out."

Kakashi remembered how she had stabbed herself in the leg to make a vision stop. He didn't want to see her hurt herself like that again...ever.

"And you usually distract yourself with pain." He thought aloud.

"It seems to be a quick solution when it becomes to much." She stood quickly. "I don't want you to see me like that."

"I promised your brother I would look after you." He stood quickly and blocked the way to stop her from walking away from him. "I'm not going to let you hurt yourself or go through it alone."

Miki stared up at Kakashi's masked face, she reached up and hooked her small fingers around the fabric. She felt him tense, but he made no move to stop her. She was the only one he would ever willingly let remove his mask. She was the only one who knew him to the very core, for better or worse she accept him for who he was. He knew all the time she had spent in his mind hadn't been pretty, but she had remained a constant in his life since he met her. She wasn't afraid of the things she saw in him, at first he wanted to hate her for it those years ago. The more he got to know her and the more time she spent in his mind trying to repair the damage caused by the trauma he had been through, he wanted more and more of her.

He didn't know why it took so long for him to make a move. Sadly, it probably took the fear of possibly losing her for him to finally act on his feelings. He rested his hand on top of her trembling hand and pulled the mask down.

"Kakashi..." Miki murmured through a blush.

She wanted him, but she was patient enough to wait for him to come to her. Right now, he was the only part of her life that felt real. He was an anchor to the reality that was floating away. He was a lot like her, broken pieces of a person put back together and forced to carry on.

"Show me." He said gently. "I'll watch with you."

"I don't want you to see this...It..It'll change everything." Miki whispered as she trailed her fingers lightly down his cheek.

He moved his headband back, revealing his sharingan. "I'm sure you've seen worse...in my mind."

She swallowed hard as her hand dropped to her side. "This will change...everything."

"Nothing could ever change between you and me." He smiled.

Miki closed her eyes and saw flames, then opened them to see him still smiling at her. She wished she could trust that nothing would change, but she knew better. Things were already changing, she didn't know how she was going to face Gai. It was going to hurt him to know the truth just as much as it had hurt her.

He held out his hand. "I promise."

Miki steeled herself as she felt her walls come down for him and took his hand.

She felt the pull inward, the echo was about to start. She sucked in a deep breath as she gripped his hand tighter. "Are you sure?"

"Yes." He nodded.

Her living room slowly faded around them as the soft green meadow came into focus.

"We're near the village Kosome. This is an echo of Nami's memory. We'll only see what she allowed me to." Miki explained as they made their way through the forest.

"Village Kosome?" He asked.

"It was destroyed and erased from history. I don't know why, but I intend to find out." She set her jaw in determination as they approached the bushes that her and Nami had watched from earlier. "We don't have to hide because they can't see us." She said.

Kakashi's eyes widened as he stood next to her. "Who would do such a thing?"

The two of them watched, just as Nami and Miki had earlier. She watched the same villagers fail in their attempts to escape.

"Shinobi?" Kakashi's eye narrowed.

"Yes. You'll see, just keep watching." Miki looked ahead, keeping her expression blank.

The only indication to him that she was getting upset, was how tight her fists were clenched at her sides. He brushed his hand against hers and she opened her hand for him. He took her hand in his and held it as they watched.

The screams finally faded away completely, Miki felt her heart clench as the familiar silence fell.

"There." She nodded at the emerging 6 figures.

She didn't have to turn to him to see that he was shocked, she felt it when he squeezed her hand.

She let go of his hand and pointed at Gai's dad. "That's my... I mean that's Gai's dad carrying me as a baby away from the village."

Kakashi was silent.

Miki turned to him, tears of anger burning in her eyes. "You promised it wouldn't change anything. And guess what, it does! It changes everything!" The vision ended, they were standing back in her living room again. The silence made the blood in her ears pound.

"I promised that it wouldn't change anything between you and me." He took her hand and pulled her to him. "And it doesn't."

"Kakashi...I-" She hesitated.

He could feel her slipping away. He thought to himself about the people he had cared about in the past and how he lost them. He would be damned if Miki was going to be an addition to that list.

"That memory proves nothing, there's different sides to every story. There's a lot that we don't know. Don't make any rash or hasty conclusions, we need more information." He looked into her long lashed, dark eyes with determination. "We'll find your answers, together."

She didn't say anything as he studied her eyes. He knew she had already made her decision and he wasn't going to let her go that easily. When he met her, he was a mess of shattered pieces scattered across the floor. Even as she suffered through her own demons, she had been brave enough to find every piece of him...pieces that he didn't know still existed. Even if the pieces of him she found cut her deep, she didn't let go. She held on until she pieced him back together, giving him a second chance in life. He had been cold towards her in the beginning, purposely showing her gruesome scenes in his mind. He was doing every thing he could back then to scare her away.

Now all he wanted was for her to be closer, he should have never hesitated in the past. He should have told her sooner how he felt, but there always seemed to be an excuse not to.

"The answers are something I'm going to have to find by myself." Miki averted her gaze with a sigh.

It was now or never, he thought to himself. He put his other hand behind her neck and pulled her close. He claimed her mouth quickly before she could protest or have a second thought. If she rejected him, at least he wouldn't always wonder if he should have tried. Her body went rigid, completely taken by surprise. He continued kissing her, hoping to give her a reason to stay here at the Leaf.

Miki felt her heart come to a screeching halt as it took her a moment to realize the _he_ was kissing her. It recharged her heart, making it pump faster as she felt the need and intense passion from his lips. She answered after taking it all in for a moment. She grabbed him by his vest, pulling him in closer as she parted her lips for him. The dam he had built to hold back his feelings for her broke completely as he put his arm around her waist, lifting her to him. He carried her into the bedroom and set her down, without breaking the kiss.

They continued to kiss, the level of intensity only growing as they undressed each other. She was the one to finally break the kiss, her breath ragged as she trailed kisses down his neck. She always thought she would be self conscious her first time, because of her scars that covered half of her body. But not with him, he knew her scars as well as she knew his. She had no reason to be self conscious.

He put his hand under her chin to tilt her head back so he could see her eyes. He didn't want to keep going if she had any shred of doubt about what they were about to do.

"Are you sure about this?" He asked.

She raised up on her tip toes and kissed his cheek near his ear and whispered, "Yes. I want you."

He was already hard from kissing her, but hearing her say _she wanted him _made him fight for control of himself. He wanted to be slow and gentle with her. He wanted her to know that she meant the world to him. He eased her down on to the bed and kissed her neck. She arched her back to him, pressing her soft breast against him. He cupped her breast with his hand gently, squeezing as he kissed her neck down to her shoulder. She moaned softly, saying his name.

He trailed his hand down her scar covered chest and felt her tense as he trailed lower. His finger tips glided down her stomach as he kissed her. He finally reached her sensitive area, she panted against his lips. He watched her as he dipped in one finger, she was dripping wet with need. She closed her eyes and tilted her head back as she moaned. He worked his finger in and out slowly, she was very tight. He rubbed her clit with his thumb as he continued to work his finger in and out until he could fit two in.

Miki could feel her core getting sore as it begged for release as his fingers teased her. She began lifting her hips to him, urging him to go deeper. She fisted her hand in his wild silver hair and cried out as she got closer to the edge. She grasped his arm with her other hand, her breathing growing more ragged.

Kakashi dipped in a third finger, it was tight at first before it adjusted. He was getting her ready for him. His self control was being put to the test, it took everything he had not to take her hard and fast. She came hard around his fingers, her insides squeezing him as she called out his name. He waited a few moments before he slipped his fingers out slowly.

"I've never..."She panted. "I've never been with anyone before."

Her confession was no surprise to him, but it still stirred something deep in him. He kissed her tenderly as he brushed her damp hair from her face. He sat up to position himself between her legs. He knew he wasn't going to last long, he was so hard it ached. He pushed the tip against her entrance as he repositioned himself on top of her.

"Just relax." He whispered in her ear as he kissed her lobe. He pushed the tip further in slowly...painfully slow. He held back the urge to plunge into her completely. He knew he needed to give her body time to adjust or it would hurt her. Her body went rigid beneath him at first. His lips found hers and he kissed her deeply to distract her. She needed to relax her muscles for him.

He pushed himself in a little further as she relaxed against him. She moaned against his lips as he felt her melt completely against him. He pushed himself further until he was completely sheathed.

"Oh." Miki moaned as he bit her neck. She was getting wetter as her insides stretched to accommodate him.

He held her face in his hands. "Are you alright?"

"Yes." Her voice was breathy, it drove him wild. "Oh, gods yes."

Miki felt pressure building as he pumped in and out of her slowly, she could feel her climax building already. Her fingernails clawed into his back as she urged him to go deeper by raising her hips up to meet his. It was painful at first, she felt a slight cramp in her side, but it went away after a few moments. The pain was replaced by intense tremors of pleasure. It made her shudder against him as he began to move quicker.

Her moans and cries only fueled his passion to please her. He wanted to make her call his name out again. He could feel his own climax approached as he felt her insides clench him tightly. She was on the edge with him and he wanted them to fall together. He pulled almost completely out and then pushed himself back in slowly. Miki arched her back, crying out in pleasure, begging him not to stop. He was pushing himself in her again, when he felt her come apart beneath him. Her insides squeezed him tightly as she called out his name. He thrust himself hard and deeper as he shouted out her name in his own release.

He collapsed on top of her, their hearts beating wildly against each other. Between using his sharingan and having the most amazing sex, he was completely spent. He shifted himself to lay next to her, on his side.

Miki turned on her side to face him after her heart rate finally slowed back down to its normal rhythm. He smiled at her lazily before leaning forward and kissing her. She kissed him back, hugging him tightly against her.

"I didn't know it could be like that." She whispered against his lips.

He remembered how she had told him about being in the different minds of criminals the Anbu Black Opps were interrogating. He didn't want to think about the different horrors she had experienced, suffering quiet torment over the past few years in her mind. He hugged her tight against him, protectively.

"I didn't either." He whispered before kissing her.

For the first time since she had discovered her mind ability, Miki felt completely at peace. Every muscle, even ones she had never been aware of before, felt completely relaxed. She wished that she could stay here always and feel this sense of wholeness with him. She nuzzled against his neck as she felt sleep begin to creep in.

Kakashi held her close to him as he felt himself drifting off to sleep. He couldn't remember ever feeling this happy. He mentally kicked himself for not showing her his true feelings sooner. He heard her mumbling his name in her sleep as he drifted off himself.


	8. Chapter 8

**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or any of the characters.**

**Author's Note: It's been awhile since I've posted. As I've said before I work pretty crazy hours. So this is just a little short chapter I wrote on my break at work earlier. I'm off the next two days and I plan on writing more, so I will probably be posting again tomorrow night. If you choose to follow me, I will also follow you. I enjoy reading fanfic just as much as I enjoy writing it. If you have something you would like for me to read, message me and I'll gladly read it ^_^**

_Wake up. I need you. Rowan and I can't do this alone. Please...for our fallen loved ones. I know you have questions about who you are, why this happened to our people...I can help you find these answers and more._

Was Nami calling out to her? Miki opened her eyes. Kakashi was still sleeping deeply with his arms wrapped around her. It still appeared to be dark outside, but the birds chirping indicated that it would be daylight soon.

Gai reported the attempt that was made to kidnap her. That means it was only a matter of minutes before someone from Black Opps would show up to take her in for questioning. She was actually surprised someone hadn't already came. She could be in their custody for days...possibly weeks. Nami was begging for her help, but if Miki was caught trying to aid her...she could be labeled a traitor. She was upset that the Leaf would destroy an entire village, but as Kakashi had said there was still a lot they didn't know. Miki knew better than anyone there was always multiple sides to a story. Nami did make more than one attempt to steal a forbidden jutsu, but she had claimed it belonged to her. However, the previous Hokage wouldn't have named it forbidden for no good reason.

Miki looked at Kakashi, if she moved...would he wake up? Its likely that he would not, using his sharingan takes a lot out of him; which is why he uses it as a last resort. She felt guilt push her heart down to her stomach, he used it to help her and now she was thinking of sneaking away from him to go meet Nami. She knew if he woke up though, he wouldn't let her go. She could try explaining her decision to him, but he would only do his best to talk her into not going.

Miki sighed. There really wasn't a good choice in this decision, but she needed to talk to Nami again. She tested the waters by shifting slightly in his arms. He didn't stir or show any signs of waking up. She sucked in a deep breath and slid out from his arms, she was almost completely free. Her heart was pounding...this felt wrong, but maybe he will understand when she explains later. She was only going to talk to Nami, then she would come straight back home to him. She set his arm down on the bed gently and began to back away slowly.

He snatched her wrist suddenly, Miki froze. His eyes were still closed.

"Kakashi?" She whispered, she could taste every thundering heart beat in the back of her throat.

He didn't answer, his breathing pattern never changed. Did he grab her in his sleep? After a few moments that seemed to last for hours, his grip loosened. He still hadn't shown any signs of waking up. Miki sighed in relief as she eased her wrist out of his grip.

That was close, she thought to herself as she got dressed quickly. She was about to walk out of the bedroom, but something made her stop and look back at him. Guilt. It was eating her up inside. He must have trusted her deeply to be able to sleep that soundly around her. She wanted to wake him up and tell him where she was going, but she knew he would try his hardest to stop her. She tip toed out of the room and swallowed down the guilt as she stepped out of her apartment.

She closed the door quietly behind her and almost crashed into someone.

"We need to talk." Kenchi stood in front of her.

Damn, she thought, how am I going to get past him?

"Now isn't a good time, Kenchi." Miki tossed her hair over her shoulder.

"This isn't a request." He crossed his arms over his chest. "I have orders to bring you in for questioning."

"I don't have to be _brought _in." Miki snapped at him. "I know where to go."

"Let's go." He grabbed her arm and pulled her along with him.

Miki jerked her arm away and glared at him. "Don't worry, I'll come along willingly. I have questions for you as well."

"Fair enough." Kenchi shrugged.

"Hey," Gai was suddenly standing in front of them, "What's going on here? Miki, who's this?"

"Gai, it's ok." Miki tried to calm him, but Gai kept glaring at Kenchi suspiciously.

"Things did _not _just look ok." Gai commented. "I don't like the way you're talking to my sister."

"My apologies." Kenchi replied sarcastically.

Miki could sense Gai's competitive nature was about to cause him to challenge Kenchi.

"Kenchi-san." Miki said sweetly. "Let me have just a minute with my brother and then we can be on our way."

"I don't think-" Kenchi started.

Miki interrupted. "Trust me this will be quicker than _you _trying to deal with him."

"Hey!-" Gai was cut off by Miki grabbing his arm and jerking him away a few feet so that they could speak somewhat privately.

"What's going on?" Gai whispered.

Miki thought about telling him a lie, but she was tired of keeping secrets and lies. Besides, at this point what was the worse the truth could do.

"I don't have much time so I'll give you the short version. So listen carefully." Miki blushed. "First of all, Kakashi is still at my apartment...I left while he was still sleeping."

"You two did-" Gai's voice squeaked.

"Yes. Yes we did." Miki said quickly, cutting him off. "And Kenchi here is my contact with the Anbu-"

"Black Opps?!" Gai interrupted.

Miki punched his shoulder. "Shh! Keep your voice down. And yes. I've been working with them for years. I'm sorry but I wasn't allowed to tell anyone...not even you. They use me to assist with interrogations."

"Miki. We need to go now." Kenchi called impatiently.

"Just a second!" Miki groaned before turning back to Gai with a small smile. "Look, I got myself into a bit of a bind. So I might be gone a few hours...or days. However long it takes with them."

"What are you talking about? What kind of trouble are you in?" Gai said softly, "I can help you."

"I have to go." She hugged Gai tightly and whispered. "I'm sorry I kept this from you...I love you."

"Miki!" Kenchi called to her.

"Bye, Gai." She sniffed as she turned away from him. She took a few steps toward Kenchi before she looked over her shoulder and said, "Tell Kakashi...tell him..." She sighed. She wasn't sure what she wanted to tell him.

"Miki." Kenchi's voice stern. "I'm not going to say it again."

"Bye, Gai." Miki said in a small voice before disappearing with Kenchi.

Gai stood there, outside of Miki's apartment as he let everything sink in. He couldn't believe his little sister was with Black Opps. His quiet, beautiful, and sweet little sister had a whole side to her that he didn't know. He wanted to go after her, but he knew better than to interfere.

Then he thought about Kakashi. He had to smile to himself about that one. He had a feeling it was only a matter of time before his eternal rival admitted his feelings for Miki. Maybe she told Kakashi more detail about why Black Opps would be taking her in for questioning. Then it hit him, he had reported there were two people that attempted to kidnap her. That's probably why they came for her. She probably knows a lot of valuable information that they don't want getting out.

He began to pace in front of her apartment back and forth, his anxiety rising. Gai thought of himself as a man of action and this waiting game wasn't for him. He would go to Lady Tsunade the Fifth Hokage and tell her about his sister. He could convince her to let him lead a team on a mission to find the two that tried to kidnap her and capture them. If the threat was eliminated, then they would have to let his sister go. And who better to lead the mission than him? Gai was about to take off straight to the Hokage's office with a renewed purpose when the door suddenly opened. Kakashi stepped outside and Gai took in a deep breath. He was going to be completely cool about this and tell Kakashi what happened. Maybe he would let Kakashi be on his team he was mentally forming for the mission.

"Gai?" Kakashi stood outside.

"Miki! Black Opps! Gone!" Gai shouted as he grabbed Kakashi's shoulders and shook him. "We have to get her back! You can be on my team!"

"What?" Kakashi eyed him cautiously. "Calm down and try again."

Gai hated how cool headed his rival could be. "I was coming to check on Miki and she was right here arguing with some man. So I stepped in, naturally, to handle the situation."

"Oh..." Kakashi sighed. "Black opps came for her."

"Yeah. We have to get her back!" Gai shook him again.

"Calm down, Gai." Kakashi said. "This is protocol. She knows a lot of classified information with her involvement over the years with them. They took her because first they need to question her to find out who exactly is trying to kidnap her and then secondly to keep her and the information she knows safe. So relax, your sister is safe."

"Well we need to find the ones that tried to kidnap her so that they'll let her go." Gai gave a thumbs up. "Problem solved."

"Its not that simple." Kakashi replied.

"And why isn't it that simple?" Gai asked.

"I think she would rather tell you herself." Kakashi spoke cautiously.

Gai turned away from him and began sprinting. Kakashi caught up with him and asked him, "Where are you going?"

"I'm going to see my sister." Gai replied with his jaw set in determination.

Kakashi knew that getting to see Miki right now would be next to impossible, even though he wanted to see her as well. He finally expressed to her just how much she meant to him only for her to be gone the next morning. He kept repeating to himself mentally that she was safe in their custody, but he also knew she was sitting on a huge secret. One that could drive a wedge between her and the Leaf. According to the memory that Nami showed her, the Leaf destroyed her village and nearly everyone it.

"So...You and Miki, huh?" Gai commented as they ran.

"Yes." Kakashi answered.

"Ironic isn't it?" Gai snorted. "We're going to go from being rivals to being brothers."

Kakashi almost cringed. It is going to break Gai's heart when he finds out that Miki isn't his real sister. It'll break his heart even more to find out his father was part of the ones that were sent to destroy her village.

"Yeah," Kakashi said. "It is."

"So...do you love her?" Gai cut his eyes over to him.

Kakashi was silent a few moments before he finally answered. "With everything I am."


	9. Chapter 9

Kakashi sat under a tree near the outskirts of town reading a book. It had been nearly a week since Black Opps took Miki in for questioning. He had Gai had went to Lady Tsunade the day they took her to request to see her, but she had denied them both. She told them that absolutely no one was allowed to see her until further notice. She explained to them that it was a security precaution, that Miki was to be kept heavily guarded in solitude until it was determined that she was no longer in danger. Kakashi understood that part, Black Opps wouldn't want her disappearing because of her valuable abilities and the information she knew from years of assisting them with interrogations. He just wished they would at least allow her to see him or Gai. She needed to be reminded that despite the truth of her origins, there are people here that care about her...that need her. But, what he didn't understand is why he and Gai were denied their request to go after the two that tried to kidnap her. Something wasn't right.

He was actually relieved that day when Gai told him Black Opps had taken her. He remembered waking up and her being gone. He feared that she had left with Nami, in pursuit of answers...or worse...revenge. He didn't think it was likely Miki was the type of person that would become consumed with thoughts of vengeance. But, then again, finding out your supposed father took part in destroying your home and wiping it from history...it could push her to become that kind of person. Kakashi knew Miki well enough to know that solitude was not good for her. She needed him and Gai, for her to be alone with her thoughts...that could be bad for her.

He sighed as he closed his book and frowned beneath his mask. He missed her, even though he knew she was safe.

A tree cracked at the trunk and fell over about 20 yards from him. Gai emerged as the dust cleared. Being unable to see his sister, Gai did what he does best to deal...he completely submerged himself in hardcore training.

"Hey." Kakashi looked up at him.

Gai paced in front of him. "It's been a week and still nothing!"

"We have to be patient and let them do their job." Kakashi replied coolly.

Gai's vein began to buldge. "Aren't you worried about her in the least bit?! This whole situation is fishy. We could have caught those two by now! Then there would be no need for all this!"

"Yes. I am worried." Kakashi stood. "But, I'm sure Lady Tsunade has her reasons. We have to trust in her."

Gai still didn't know about the memory Nami had shown Miki and Kakashi wasn't going to tell him. He didn't feel it was his place to tell him. Miki needed to be the one to talk to him about it.

Gai punched a hole in another tree. "I don't know how you can stay so cool at a time like this!"

"I challenge you to a match." Kakashi said.

Gai raised a bushy eyebrow at him. "What?"

Kakashi knew that would get his attention and distract him, besides it would be a good way to let off some steam...for both of them. Kakashi may have been acting calm on the surface, but inside his blood was boiling.

"You heard me." Kakashi put his book away. "Let's move further out away from the village. If you win...I'll go with you to talk to Lady Tsunade again. And if I win...You'll go with me to talk to Lady Tsunade again."

Gai scratched his head, confused. "So either way we're going to talk to her?"

"Yes. But how the talk will go depends on who wins." Kakashi closed his eye, smiling happily.

"Ok." Gai pumped a fist in the air. "I'm not holding back, just warning you!"

"I was hoping for that." Kakashi replied with cool confidence.

"Let's go!" Gai began sprinting with Kakashi following him.

* * *

Miki sat in her cell, meditating. She had lost count of how many days she'd been locked in here. She was questioned the day she arrived here, which didn't go well. She told Kenchi she knew everything and that she wanted answers. But, instead of giving her answers, she was locked in here for her own "protection."

_They're probably trying to decided on whether to execute me or not._ She thought to herself. After what she saw they were capable of, she couldn't put the possibility pass them. Kenchi came to speak to her after they had locked her away. He had told her that he was going to do everything in his power to get her out soon and he swore that he knew nothing about her past.

_I guess they just kept me alive to use me for my abilities and now that I know the truth...they're afraid of me. And when the Leaf doesn't understand something or fears something they just destroy it. _Miki thought to herself with a sigh. She began to wonder how different life would have been if she had grown up with people like herself.

Miki sighed, telling herself that turning to negative and despairing thoughts was not a productive use of her time or energy. She focused on positive memories, her mind drifted back to her childhood...before she was burned badly and the man she thought was her father was still alive. She was sitting on his shoulders as he walked through the village, Gai was as hyperactive as ever. He ran circles around them, they were heading home. The warm scene filled Miki with joy as echoes of their laughter lingered in the room around her.

"Gai..."She sighed to herself. She still loved him as a brother even though she knew the truth. Nothing would ever change how much she loved him. He had always been there for her. After their father died, he always remained strong for her even when she cried during the night. She remembered he would sit up with her and tell her funny stories to cheer her up. He never once showed weakness, not around her anyway.

The wall behind her exploded, pushing her flat to the floor.

"What the?" She strained as she pushed herself up.

Her cell door opened in front of her and a guard ran in.

"Come on." He grabbed Miki's arm and help her up the rest of the way.

Nami emerged from the rumble of the blast.

"Nami?" Miki was still dazed.

"Let's go." Nami gestured at the blasted hole.

"I took care of the guards." The guard said as he pulled Miki towards the blasted hole with him.

"Good job, Rowan." Nami nodded at him.

"Rowan?" Miki looked at the guard, puzzled. His disguise dissolved with a _poof _to reveal the red headed man she saw with Nami that night.

"At your service." He grinned. "Come on. I'm sure they've called for back up."

Miki planted her feet in the ground. "I can't leave with you."

"Now isn't the time for this, Miki." Nami hissed.

"No. I'm not leaving with you. I won't be a traitor to the Leaf." Miki said sternly.

"Look, they betrayed _you._ They're not your friends. _We_ are your friends." Nami stepped in close to Miki. "They put you away to let you rot here. We're here to save you."

"No..." Miki backed away. "That's not true."

"Damn it, Miki!" Nami clenched her hands into fists. "You'll thank me for this later."

Rowan moved with a speed that Miki never saw coming as he punched her in the stomach. Miki spit drops of blood on the cell floor before passing out as Rowan caught her.

"You didn't have to hit her _that _hard." Nami scolded him.

Rowan slung Miki over his shoulder. "I wanted to make sure she was out."

* * *

Kakashi blocked Gai's kick inches away from his face. They were in the middle of a crater that they had created. He matched every move Gai made. He had to admit to himself that Gai had gotten much stronger since the last time they sparred, but a smile crept beneath his mask. He was still a lot faster than Gai.

"You two don't have anything else better to do?" Kenchi called from outside of the crater.

"What the hell do you want?" Gai shouted.

Kakashi felt the same sentiment towards the man, but remained silent as he and Gai separated from each other.

"Lady Tsunade wants to see the two of you...immediately." Kenchi crossed his arms over his chest. "So I suggest you two stop playing with each other and get out of that hole now."

Gai shifted his eyes over to Kakashi as they both shared the same thoughts of how they'd like to pound on Kenchi.

They arrived in the Hokage's office in record time, they were both eager to hear what she had to say. It had to be about Miki, why else would she call them both?

She sat behind the desk and stared at the two of them a few moments, noting to herself they looked like they just came back from a battle.

She finally said, "Miki is missing."

"What?!" Gai clenched his fists. "I thought that was the whole reason she's been on lock down. You wouldn't even let _me _see her!"

"Gai." Kakashi grabbed his shoulder. "Let her finish."

"The male is apparently exceptional at disguising jutsu, no one suspected him. He is also incredibly fast and strong. The female's abilities still remain to be unknown. There were signs of struggle in her cell, we don't think she left with them willingly." Lady Tsunade sat back in her chair. "We have to bring Miki back to the Leaf. Her skills are extremely valuable to us; not only her mind jutsu, but her skills as a medic ninja as well as her knowledge." She paused and looked over at Kakashi. "Kakashi, I want you to lead a team to recover her. You, Gai, and Kenchi will work together on this."

"We have to work with _him!?_" Gai pointed at Kenchi, who was standing beside Lady Tsunade.

"Yes. He is a well trained medic ninja as well as part of Black Opps. He's work with your sister over the past few years. Trust me, you want him on your team." She narrowed her eyes at Gai. "You do want your sister back, right?"

Gai relaxed his posture. "Yes."

"Good." She smiled. "Any questions?"

"Yeah," Gai perked up. "Why does Kakashi get to lead?"

Lady Tsunade sighed. "Because he is the best a tracking...and he's cool headed. I trust him to make the right judgment calls. The two of you are dismissed, I want to speak with Kakashi privately."

Gai left the room reluctantly with Kenchi.

"This is the part I hate." Lady Tsunade leaned forward and sighed after they were gone. "I didn't want to say this in front of Gai and Kenchi."

Kakashi stepped in closer. "What do you mean?"

"If it does turn out she left with them of her own free will and she refuses to come back with you...your orders are to..."Lady Tsunade sighed. "Kill her."

Kakashi swallowed hard. "I'm sure it won't come to that."

"I hope for Gai's sake and her own that it doesn't come to that." Lady Tsunade smiled at him.

_I won't let it come to that,_ Kakashi thought to himself as he exited her office to join his teammates. If Lady Tsunade had any idea of how close he was to Miki, she wouldn't have given him th order.


	10. Chapter 10

Miki opened her eyes slowly, her breath caught as she slowly emerged from unconsciousness. It hurt like hell for her to breathe. She took small shallow breaths to keep the pain at a minimal. Her eyes fluttered open as she tried to sit up, but the pain kept her down. She turned her head and saw a blur of red slowly come in to focus.

"You're finally awake." Rowan was sitting on the edge of her bed grinning. "Sorry I hit you so hard, I got caught up in the moment...you know?"

"Get...get away from me." Miki grunted.

"Awww. That's no way to treat me after I helped rescue you." Rowan smiled at her.

"You didn't rescue me." Miki sat up in spite of the pain. "I said I didn't want to go with you."

"You should probably take it easy." Rowan chuckled. "I hit really hard!"

Miki glared at him as she held her ribs tightly. "Where are we?"

"One of Orochimaru's hideouts." Rowan answered in a hushed voice. "Don't worry, its safe here. No one will ever find you."

"You better hope for your sake that's true." Miki looked around the small room. "Where's Nami?"

"Oh, she had to report in...she'll be back with you shortly." Rowan answered and leaned in closer to Miki. "So...you're like us, huh?"

Miki brushed her bangs from her eyes and glared at him. "What do you mean?"

"You're from the village Kosome...like me and Nami. We thought we were the only survivors." Rowan smiled. "You have no idea what it meant to us to find you."

Miki sucked in a deep breath and cringed in pain. "I think you broke some of my ribs."

"I'm so sorry." Rowan's blue eyes looked sincere. "I didn't mean to!"

Something about his expression made Miki soften hers as she said, "It's ok. I can fix this."

Her hands began to glow blue with her chakra as she placed them over her own ribs and began to heal herself.

"Whoa!" Rowan's eyes widened. "You know how to heal?"

"Yes..." Miki strained.

"Do you need anything?" Rowan offered.

"No." Miki concentrated on healing herself. After a few moments, the pain was almost non existent. She swung her legs over the edge of the bed and stood.

Rowan was at her elbow, "Where are you going?"

"Home." Miki replied flatly.

"You are home." Rowan smiled.

Miki sighed. "I'm going back to the Leaf."

Rowan frowned. "Why would you want to do that? They locked you away."

Miki tucked her hair behind her ears. "They were trying to protect me."

"It looked more like you were a prisoner to me." Rowan commented.

It suddenly hit Miki that Rowan had mentioned they were at one of Orochimaru's hideouts. Her eyes widened as she turned to Rowan and said, "Where did you say we were?"

"One of Orochimaru's hideouts." Rowan shrugged.

Miki felt sweat trickle down her back. She forced control breaths as fear began to claw its way through her heart. "Orochimaru?!" She exclaimed as she sat back down on the bed.

"Yeah." Rowan scratched his spikey red hair.

"Rowan." Miki looked up at him with wide eyes. "He's bad news. Serious bad news. You and Nami can't be dealing with him!"

"Oh, he's not so bad." Rowan waved a dismissive hand as he sat down next to her.

"Yes, he is." Miki took in a shaky breath. "Why are you associating with him?"

"I guess you could say we have a common enemy. We formed an alliance." Rowan explained as though he was talking about the weather.

"He's dangerous." Miki cut her eyes to Rowan. "We have to get out of here."

"But he's looking forward to meeting you." Rowan smiled.

Miki felt her heart drop to the bottom of her stomach. "Why does he want to meet me?"

"We were finally able to retrieve the forbidden jutsu that was taken from our people." Rowan explained.

"And that is?" Miki felt a knot growing in her throat.

"Mind control jutsu." Rowan announced proudly. "We're going to make the Leaf pay for everything they did to us."

Miki swallowed hard as she clenched her shaking hands. "He wants to experiment with it?"

"Of course." Rowan smiled as he reached to brush away her bangs. "But don't worry about that."

"You didn't answer my question." Miki fought to keep her fear in check. "Why does he want to meet me?"

"He needs someone to experiment on." Rowan smiled. "I promise it won't hurt at all. Nami and I would never do that to you. You get to control his mind...or he's going to control yours...I forget actually."

Miki kept her breathing under control, she didn't want to show fear. She played through a possible scenario in her mind. She needed to know how many people were in this hideout and she needed to know if Orochimaru was here. If the answers were favorable, she could escape. She smoothed down the front of her long, green shirt as she gathered her thoughts. The Leaf would be sending a team after her in the least, because of her association with Black Opps...but they would be walking into a trap if Orochimaru was here.

She forced a calm expression with fake confidence as she spoke, "And is Orochimaru here?"

"Oh, no." Rowan smiled as he shook his head. "He should be here in a few days though."

Miki felt relieved as she exhaled. This meant she needed to escape before he got here.

"He could be late though...he's been pretty wrapped up lately with that kid." Rowan patted Miki's shoulder. "But he'll be here soon enough."

Miki smiled at him as she pushed away the fear. "So...you're from Kosome as well?"

"Yeah." He smiled and cocked his head to the side.

"Is anyone else here with us?" Miki smiled at him, trying her best to put on a friendly face.

"Its just you, me, and Nami until Orochimaru gets here." Rowan smiled. "But, don't worry I won't let anything happen to you."

Rowan is sweet, but he is a complete idiot Miki thought to herself, no wonder he is always in such a happy mood. But, for what he lacks in intelligence, he makes up for it in strength and speed.

"That's good to know." Miki gave him her best smile as sweat trickled down her neck.

"Would you like me to show you around?" Rowan stood and offered her his hand. "Nami will come find us when she's done reporting in. She'll be happy to know that you're awake and you healed yourself." His smile faded. "Sorry about hitting you so hard."

"You already apologized." Miki sighed.

"Oh." He smile awkwardly as he offered her his hand again. "Do you feel like taking a walk?"

Miki smiled politely and for some reason she didn't want to hurt his feelings, so she took his hand. His smile grew wider as he took her hand and hooked his arm around hers.

"Uh..." Miki blushed. "I don't need help. I'm ok."

"It'll make me feel better if you let me help." Rowan patted her arm. "Besides Nami will pummel me if you get hurt again."

"You're afraid of Nami?" Miki looked up at him confused as they walked together.

"Well..." Rowan's smile twitched. "Let's just say I don't want to get on her bad side."

Great, Miki thought, I've been kidnapped by an idiot and a sociopath. She decided to try to befriend him. Even though he was an idiot, he seemed to have a genuinely kind heart...well to her anyway. She needed to learn more about him and Nami if she had any hope of getting out of here.

"So, how do you know Nami?" Miki asked in a sweet voice, it was the tone she used to speak to her patients that were children.

"We're both from Kosome." He said proudly as they turned down a hall.

"Well, yes you are..." Miki smiled tightly and continued. "I saw her memory of Kosome. She hid and they didn't see her. How did you manage to escape?"

"Oh." Rowan seemed to deflate as he spoke. "Well I guess you didn't see it all, but I was in the tree above her. They were about to see her, so I pulled her up in the tree with me."

"You saved her." Miki commented.

"Yeah." He scratched his head. "We've been friends ever since then. We trained together and grew up together."

Miki felt her heart slump in her chest at the thought of two children alone in the world together.

She looked at him sympathetically. "That must have been tough."

He shrugged. "At first it was, but then we got the hang of it I guess."

Miki looked down. She was lucky that she grew up with lots of love and there was always someone to support her. He may have not been her real father, but he did love her. There's no question in her heart about that and of course there was always Gai. She grew up with a family, even though she lost her adopted father at a young age, at least she knew what it was like to have one. Gai was always very loving and protective of her...to the point it was annoying sometimes. Nami and Rowan lost everything that day and grew up with only each other.

"Hey, don't be sad." Rowan craned his head down to look her in the eyes with a smile. "We're all together now and that's what matters."

Yes that is what matters, she thought to herself, but not like this. Not as enemies of the Leaf. Rowan could be convinced to turn away from vengence...Miki was sure of it. But, Nami...Miki wasn't sure she could convince her. She seemed darker than Rowan and it was most likely her idea that they go through Orochimaru to get what they needed.

"So, you're pretty strong." Miki tried to make small talk with him in hopes of getting him to open up.

"Yeah, Nami tells me I forget my own strength a lot." He smile sheepishly. "Sometimes I break stuff on accident."

"Well, that's ok. I'm good at fixing things." Miki smiled at him.

"You're nice! I like you." Rowan perked up.

"Is Nami mean to you?" Miki lowered her voice.

"Well, sometimes. She always says she's sorry though." He shrugged. "She's been dealing with a lot. But now that you're here maybe you can help her better than I could."

"I'm sure you're plenty help for her." Miki reassured as she patted his arm.

Rowan smiled proudly. "I do my best."

"Yes, you do." Miki looked down the never ending hall that seemed more like a tunnel. "So where exactly are we?"

Rowan laughed. "Your memory is worse than mine. We're in Orochimaru's hideout, remember?"

Miki bit her lip to keep from groaning and smiled. "Oh, yes you did tell me that. But where exactly would that be?"

"Oh! You mean like what are the nearby villages?" He said as we turned a corner.

Nami stood, blocking the way.

"Oh, don't bother Miki with unnecessary details like that." Nami said with a tight smile.

Rowan's grip on Miki's arm tightened, she gasped for a moment. She didn't want to hurt Rowan's feelings by telling him to let go, not after she had made some progress in befriending him. But, she was pretty sure there would be a hand shaped bruise on her arm later.

"It's ok. He wasn't bothering me, I was enjoying our conversation." Miki smiled at Nami.

"That's a relief." Nami replied with an icy sweet smile. "Come with me, I want to show you something."

"Ok." Miki patted Rowan's hand that was painfully gripping into her arm. "Thanks for walking with me Rowan."

"Oh," Rowan let her go and cocked his head to the side with a smile. "No problem."

"Come on, Miki." Nami gestured Miki to come with her as she walked.

Miki followed quietly, watching her. She knew two facts; one, Nami had played her and two, she needed to get out of here before Orochimaru arrived. If she was still here when he shows up, saying it would be bad would be the understatement of the century. Miki walked next to Nami with her professional blank expression. It was clear that between Nami and Rowan, Nami was in charge.

She would need to get into Nami's head and understand why she felt the need to take such extreme action to kidnap her from Black Opps. The fact that Nami and Rowan were able to do so shows they would be challenging adversaries. She knew that while Rowan may be incredibly strong and fast, he was also gullible and simple minded. Miki just needed to figure out Nami's strengths and weaknesses, then she could assess the situation and come up with a solution.

Miki's instincts told her that there was more to that memory than Nami let on. Would it be possible to fabricate a memory? Did Nami fool her completely or was there any truth to it?

* * *

Kakashi stood outside of Konoha, waiting for his teammates to regroup with him as he summoned Pakkun. The dog looked up at him with bored eyes.

"I assume you need me to do some tracking for you." He regarded Kakashi.

"Yes." Kakashi nodded.

"Ok. Who is it?" Pakkun sighed.

"We need to track down Miki. Here is something of hers." Kakashi held out a scarf he took from her apartment.

"Miki!?" Pakkun's eyes went wide as he remembered her. His thoughts drifted to a nice, dark haired girl that had petted him and said he was cute. Not to mention she always had a treat for him and when he asked her if she wanted to touch his paw, she did.

"Yes. She was kidnapped." Kakashi explained.

"She is a sweet girl." Pakkun commented with set determination before sniffing the scarf. "I will find her."

"We are ready to go!" Gai ran up with Kenchi following him. "I checked in on that vile beast of Miki's to make sure he was ok. Why she cares so much about that creature I will never understand!"

Kenchi cut his eyes to Gai. "What is with you and cats?"

Gai met his gaze with intensity. "You wouldn't understand. It is a tale of youth! And rivalry! And a grudge that only the most passionate of ninja would understand!"

Kenchi rolled his eyes. "You are nothing like your sister."

"Of course I'm not." Gai smiled. "I'm a man."

Pakkun interrupted them. "Look, as interesting as all that is... I'm going to bite both of you if we don't leave now."

Kakashi nodded, well said, he thought to himself. Pakkun turned and disappeared into the woods, the team followed him.

Gai caught up next to Kakashi as they ran through the tree tops, jumping branch to branch. They were both considerably faster than Kenchi, who lagged behind them just out of earshot.

"Think we can trust this guy?" Gai asked him quietly.

"I know you blame him for Miki's kidnapping, but he was just doing his job. It's not his fault those two broke in and took her." Kakashi answered, he was focused on following Pakkun.

"Maybe so." Gai narrowed his eyes. "But I still don't trust him."

Pakkun stopped suddenly and descended to the ground, the team followed.

"What is it?" Kakashi asked as Pakkun sniffed around.

"Here." Pakkun pointed a paw. "They must have stopped here a moment."

Kakashi inspected the ground that Pakkun was pointing at, there was dried up blood.

"Is that?" Gai squeezed his hands into fists.

"Its most likely her blood. There was drops of blood left on the floor where we were keeping her." Kenchi noted. "They took her alive though."

"How are you so sure of that?" Gai asked, giving him his full attention.

"Because not only did they take her, they stole a forbidden jutsu scroll." Kenchi explained.

"What type of forbidden jutsu?" Kakashi asked.

Kenchi cleared his throat, reluctant to tell them. "It's a mind control jutsu. And if they wanted her dead, they would have killed her the first time."

"Mind control?" Gai looked confused. "How does that work?"

"Its pretty self explanatory." Kenchi sighed. "Look, the fact that it exists is classified information."

"You think they plan on using it on Miki?" Kakashi asked.

"We're not sure exactly what they're planning, but that is a possibility. Either way, if you see Miki...approach her with extreme caution. That guy that broke in to kidnap her can do perfect impersonations. She could be an imposter or she could be under their control." Kenchi said.

Gai was staring at the dried blood puddle with deep concern.

"Gai?" Kakashi said.

"Yeah?" He answered without looking up.

"You ok?" Kakashi asked.

"She's probably so scared, she's had little to no combat experience. I promised I would always take care of her." Gai looked up with determination. "And I plan on doing just that. I will not fail her again!"

Kenchi sighed. "Look, Gai. Don't worry so much about her, she's very strong willed and cool headed. I know her well enough to have confidence in her resourcefulness, she's very capable and intelligent."

"He's right, Gai." Kakashi reassured him.

"And how do you know her so well?" Gai narrowed his eyes at Kenchi.

Kenchi averted his eyes to the sky. "Because, she's the closest thing I have to a best friend." He sighed. "I know I'm not the easiest guy to get along with. She saved me."

Gai went rigid. His little sister saved this guy?

"She saved you?" Gai asked.

"Yeah." Kenchi smiled, still keeping his eyes on the sky. "She did. I'm alive because of her. I'm not the type to get sentimental, but you need to know that your sister can handle herself."

Kakashi smiled to himself secretly, just when he thought he knew everything there was to know about her, Miki still amazed him. She'd saved many ninjas in her own special way. She wasn't afraid of what was inside of people and she helped them realize that they shouldn't be afraid of themselves either. He thought of her as a little girl during the nine tales attack that saved children from a burning house. She was willing to put others before herself at such a young age, it was a rare quality to have.

"We should push on." Pakkun said as he turned. "I'm picking up her scent this way."

"Let's go." Kakashi agreed.

Pakkun took back to the trees with the team following behind him, Kenchi lagging behind them. Even though he just reassured Gai of Miki's capableness, he was still worried about his friend. He remembered how her first interrogation went, she was only 15 at the time. He was 18 years old and he remembered wondering why they would enlist such a small and weak little girl. He was furious when they assigned her to him as a partner. He was angry at the time, like always, he always felt the world was against him in some way. But then, this sweet little dark haired girl came into his life. That little girl broke down his walls he had built around his bitter heart after he lost his first love, she died during the rampage of the nine tails attack. He learned at a young age that life was unfair and never would be.

The first criminal she ever had to interrogate had been a particularly evil man, he could only imagine what she had seen in his mind. He didn't feel sorry for her, he saw her as an annoyance when he found her on the floor crying afterwards. At first she had screamed, then after a few moments she was quietly sobbing.

_You can go home now until we call you again._ He had told her, his voice void of any emotion.

She didn't answer him then, she sat up and cried into her hands softly.

He had gotten irritated with her. Her crying had only annoyed him, made him even more angry they assigned him to be her partner. _Stop crying, it was only in his mind._ He told her bitterly. _Its not like he really hurt you._

At that moment she stopped crying and looked at him with red stained eyes. What she said at that moment cracked the walls around his heart. _I'm not crying because he hurt me._

He remembered rolling his eyes._ Then why are you crying?_

She looked up at Kenchi with big sad brown eyes and said, _I'm crying because he suffers. His mind...I want to heal it and I just don't know how!_

Kenchi remembered his eyes widening before he knelt down to her. How could someone care so much for a person they barely knew?

_You can't heal him. He did bad things because he's bad and now he has to answer for his crimes. _Kenchi had said.

_I can't accept that like the rest of you can._ She stood and looked down at him with determination and fervor that he would never forget. _I'm going to learn how to heal people like him. People do bad things, but I believe we were all created to do good things in this world._

Kenchi turned his mind back to the present as he followed his teammates. Miki started out as an idealist and he was a pessimistic fool. Over the years though, he watched her grow more quiet and withdrawn. He believed that they had rubbed off on each other, balancing each other out. He found a median with her, he wasn't so negative anymore. Miki may have developed a tough exterior, but to him, she would always be the little girl with a big and exposed heart that cried over that prisoner. He had only met one other person in his life that he thought was genuinely a good person, and she had died in the nine tails attack.

Miki had gotten inside his head and helped him battle his demons. He was truly her first patient and she never gave up on him. He never told Miki that she saved him, he never told anyone that she had until today. He didn't like admitting he needed anyone. He promised silently to himself that when they got her back, he would tell her.


	11. Chapter 11

**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or any characters. This is purely for fun :)**

**Author Note: Hey guys! Sorry if the story is starting to feel rushed. I'm trying to bring it to a close in a few more chapters. As I said before this is my very first fan fiction I've written, ever. I hope you have enjoyed reading it as much as I have writing it. Because that's all that matters is having fun with it? Right? If you would like to follow me, that's awesome! I'll follow you too! If not, that's cool too:) Anyway, here's what I have for chapter 11. I'll be posting chapter 12 in a few days when I finally get a day off!**

Gai, Kakashi, and Kenchi were dashing through the trees as they followed Pakkun. Kakashi silently hoped to himself they would get to her quickly.

"How much combat experience does Miki really have?" Kakashi asked Kenchi, genuinely curious. He felt a small pang of envy that Kenchi knew Miki in some ways that he didn't. Kakashi notice Gai lift a busy eyebrow, he was curious as well.

"Well," Kenchi kept his gaze ahead. "She has been on a few missions with me, but I can't tell you anything about that. She may not have as much experience as we do, but I've seen enough to know she can handle herself."

Hearing that did give Gai a sense of relief as he commented, "She doesn't really train much from what I've seen."

Kenchi smiled and shifted his eyes to Gai momentarily. "She didn't want anyone to know. I train with her on a regular basis."

Kenchi noted to himself how far she's come along with her training over the years. He had brought _infinity,_ her weapon that she specialized in using during her training. She was almost flawless with it, part of him was eager to see her in action. If Gai and Kakashi knew half as much as he did about her, they probably would be as worried.

"Why are you smiling like that?" Gai glared at Kenchi.

"Just a memory." Kenchi smiled wider.

"You have some sort of weird thing for my sister?" Gai asked wearily.

Kakashi's eye shifted to Kenchi momentarily before looking ahead again to follow Pakkun.

"Not in the way you're probably thinking." Kenchi cut his eyes at Gai.

"You better not." Gai mumbled.

"That's weird." Kakashi noted.

"What?" Kenchi asked.

"They shouldn't have gotten this far. We should have caught up with them by now." Kakashi said.

* * *

Nami brought Miki into a large room where a man was meditating. Miki tried to hide her shock to see someone else here. Rowan had told her it was only them. Maybe he didn't know? She thought to herself.

"Miki, I'd like you to meet Blitz. He is our contact with Orochimaru." Nami introduced them to each other in her overly sweet voice. Her tone made chills creep up her spine.

"It's a pleasure to meet you." The blonde man said to Miki without opening his eyes.

"Yeah." Miki replied skeptically. "You too."

"Don't be rude, Blitz." Nami tapped her foot impatiently.

"Forgive me." Blitz said, his tone bored as he stood and opened his eyes.

Miki almost gasped when she saw his eyes, they looked strange. The pupils were bright blue instead of black, the rest of his eye was black. She averted her eyes quickly and thought of how she hated it when people starred at her scars.

"It's ok." Miki said.

"My eyes scare you." Blitz commented.

Miki brought her gaze back to his, more steady this time. "No, your eyes don't scare me. I just find them unusual. That's all."

Blitz began to walk around Miki in a circle, sizing her up with his creepy eyes. She kept her eyes ahead with a blank expression until he came to a stop in front of her. She really wished she had her weapon, _infinity_, with her.

"I would like to do a little...test with her, if that's ok with you, Nami." Blitz kept his gaze on Miki.

"I'm fine with it and I'm sure Miki is up for the challenge. Aren't you Miki?" Nami's tone still sickly sweet.

Miki glared over at Nami.

Nami continued to smile innocently as she said to Blitz, "Just don't do any permanent damage."

Blitz only answered with, "Hmph."

The world changed around Miki as she blinked. She was no longer standing in the big empty room with Nami and Blitz. She was bound to a pole with her hands behind her back, alone.

Miki forced deep, even breaths. She needed to remember her training for a situation like this, giving in to panic was not an option.

Blitz appeared in front of her. "I may not have mind capabilities like you or Nami, but I am highly observant."

Miki swallowed hard, refraining from squirming in her bonds. She would not give the bastard the satisfaction of showing fear. He paced in front of her, watching her with his abnormal eyes. Miki noted to herself she would describe them as appearing to be inside-out. Miki had two fears...one of them was being in a situation she couldn't control. Kenchi had trained her on controlling this fear, by putting her in similar scenarios. She hated being tied up, but thanks to Kenchi, she was able to remain calm. This wasn't like being in someone's mind, when she was in someone's mind she could still move around freely because she wasn't part of it. She was merely an outsider existence observing what the mind allowed her to. For the most part, she would just go along with whatever the person did to her in their mind to give them a sense of control. This would usually result in the person letting his or her guard down because they think they have the upper hand.

But her other fear... well that wasn't exactly something Kenchi could train her on overcoming.

Miki sucked in a trembling breath and steeled herself as she replied, "Oh yeah? And what exactly did you observe?"

Blitz approached her slowly and reached for the top button of her high collared green shirt. He trailed his fingers down her neck slowly before reaching the button and unhooking it. Miki felt anxiety rise in the back of her throat as she swallowed hard. He unbuttoned the next one, exposing her neck and cleavage completely.

"I noticed you have some interesting scars." He traced the scarred flesh lightly with his finger.

Miki forced an amused smile and said, "If you think these are interesting, just wait till you see the ones I'm about to give you."

Blitz pulled away from her, taking a few steps back as he snickered. "You've got spirit. I'm going to enjoy breaking it."

The ground around her feet ignited as flames roared to life. Miki's eyes widened, she could not hide her fear. This was her most deepest fear, being burned alive. She had nearly died from it years ago and the pain was something she would never forget.

Miki tried breathing calmly and reasoned to herself that this had to be a trick, there was no way this was real. She almost had herself convinced until she felt her feet began to heat up.

"Your scars suggest you were severely burned." Blitz purred like an evil beast watching its prey.

Miki ignored the heat and stuck her chin out as she replied bravely. "Yes I was."

"Do you remember what it felt like?" Blitz raised an eyebrow.

The flames were getting higher as Miki fought the panic, she was beginning to hyperventilate. Her skin was beginning to tingle; she bit back a scream as she felt her skin begin to peel.

"I thought so." Blitz laughed as the flames drew higher.

Miki felt the familiar searing pain as it curled her skin back and made it bubble. It took her a few minutes to realize she was screaming. The last time she was in this much pain, she lost consciousness, but in this twisted world...she remained awake. I should be dead by now, she thought to herself, if anything from carbon monoxide.

"Its fascinating how the mind retains every trauma its ever experienced, isn't it?" Blitz smiled viciously at her through the flames. He hated her kind, he worked hard to use his genjutsu; while her disgusting clan was able to just waltz into anyone's mind and look around. It was as easy to them as breathing, they did it naturally and he hated them for it. But, with Orochimaru's help, he would be able to harness their ability. Then the forbidden mind control jutsu would be his... and his master's of course.

Miki continued to scream in blood curling agony as the flames grew hotter. She began to feel her consciousness search for the sweet release of death, but it wouldn't come.

She felt her mind slip back in time, she was with Kenchi after an intense sparring session. They laid in the grass together, covered in sweat.

_Too bad ninja don't just fight with their minds, _she had commented.

_There are some that do,_ Kenchi answered as he sat up.

_Like me?_ Miki turned her head to gaze at him as she asked.

_No...Not exactly. You actually enter a person's mind. You can look at their thoughts, fears, and memories..But what I'm talking about is Illusionary Techniques known as Genjutsu. It requires very precise chakra control and very high intelligence. It is used to attack the victim's mind, it can make the physical body believe it is experiencing pain. It can be a highly effective tool for breaking the victim's will._ Kenchi had explained carefully.

_So how do you fight back?_ Miki had asked.

Kenchi was watching birds fly over them when he replied, _The attacker's chakra flow has to be disrupted somehow. _

Miki opened her eyes wide as she realized that must be what is happening now. Blitz was using some sort of Genjutsu to make her believe she was being burned alive. This wasn't actually happening. Realizing this, however, did not make the pain subside in the least. She was going to have to get inside his head somehow.

"Yes." Miki glared at Blitz's creepy eyes through the flames. "I do remember what this feels like. The question is, how do you feel about that?"

Blitz's eyes widened in surprise at her unexpected question.

That was the opening Miki needed, she had to disrupt his chakra flow somehow. She concentrated on his eyes.

"It's amazing what the human brain is capable of, isn't it?" Miki grunted in pain. She saw a flicker of a young boy standing alone, in the rain. "It can remember all types of pain it experiences...including being left alone in the rain."

Blitz's eyes widened as the flames faltered.

Miki took the opening as her pain began to lessen and continued her verbal onslaught as she peeked further into his mind. "You're no stranger to rejection as well."

"Shut up!" Blitzed yelled as the flames nearly died down.

"Rejected by-" Her voice softened with pity, "your own father..."

The illusion unraveled itself instantly as they returned to reality. They were once again in the big empty room with Nami. Miki fell to her knees, sweat dripping from her forehead. Her muscles felt like jelly as she fought not to collapse completely. She could hear muffled sounds of arguing.

"You promised to keep her safe!" It was Rowan and he sounded angry.

"She is safe. It was just a little test, she couldn't be hurt physically." Nami explained sweetly.

"You didn't tell me that _he _was here!" Rowan exclaimed as he moved protectively next to Miki as she knelt on the floor, dazed.

"Rowan calm down, he just got here not too long ago. I would never lie to you, brother." Nami said with a calm, reassuring voice.

"He was hurting her." Rowan glared at Blitz.

"It was only an illusion." Blitz said flatly.

Rowan knelt down next to Miki and pulled her into his arms. "Are you ok?"

"Yeah, Rowan." Miki smiled weakly at him. Even though she wasn't hurt physically, Blitz's little test hurt her psyche. She felt battled, her mind had retained the trauma she just experienced mentally. Mental fatigue was just as real as physical. Between Rowan and Nami, escaping from them would have been fairly easy. But with Blitz in the picture, it was going to prove to be more difficult.

* * *

Pakkun finally came to a stop at the base of a large mountain, the team caught up to him. He stood in front of an opening to a cave.

"Why is it always a cave?" Kenchi sighed.

"Don't tell me you're scared." Gai teased.

"What?!" Kenchi raised a fist. "That's ridiculous! Even if I was, at least its an understandable fear...unlike being afraid of a cat."

Gai's face reddened as the vein on his forehead bulged.

"That's enough." Pakkun interrupted as he peered into the cave. "They definitely went in there."


	12. Chapter 12

Miki pushed herself up with trembling hands. She knew that Blitz was more than a match for her, but she couldn't give in.

"Miki..." Rowan soothed.

She pushed him away gently and said, "I'm fine." Her vision blurred for a moment as she stood. Blitz had returned to his meditative state. Miki glared over at Nami, "What the hell was that?" She demanded.

Nami tossed her dark hair over her shoulder before answering, "It was just a test and you passed with flying colors."

"I'm done with your tests." Miki took a step towards her. "I will not be your lab rat to experiment on."

Nami frowned. "You honestly think that is all you are to me?"

"That is all you have shown me that I am to you." Miki answered.

"You should go rest, Miki." Rowan said softly next to her.

"I appreciate your concern, Rowan, but I'm fine." Miki kept her focus on Nami. "What exactly am I to you?"

Nami smiled and spoke in her sweet voice. "You are like a little sister to me. As your older sister, I'm asking you for help. Are you not angry about what The Leaf did to us?"

Miki swallowed hard and took another step towards Nami. "Yes. I'm angry...hurt...confused..." She paused and averted her eyes a moment. "It hurt enough to learn that Gai isn't my brother by blood..." Miki brought her gaze back to Miki with determination. "But I choose him as my brother. I love him."

"So that's your decision?" Nami frowned and the sweetness left her voice. "You choose that pack of murders and liars...you choose them over your own clan?"

"Gai isn't the one who killed our people." Miki answered.

"You do realize that by choosing him, you choose to stand with The Leaf?" Nami asked in a growling tone.

Miki nodded. "Yes I realize this." Miki remembered when she first met Kakashi and the conversation they had. _Bad things happen,_ he had said. He's right...bad things happen. It happens to good people and bad people. She didn't know why The Leaf chose to destroy her village, but she had faith and trust in her brother. She knew in the deepest part of her heart and soul that if she couldn't trust anyone else in this world, she could trust her older brother.

"I don't think you realize what you're giving up." Nami took a step toward Miki. They were now only a few feet apart.

"It doesn't have to be this way, Nami." Miki answered softly. "Come back to the village with me. We'll try to make sense of this together."

"Hmph." Nami answered with a glare. "They had you locked away like an animal when we rescued you. Do you honestly think they will greet us with open arms? If you think that you're dumber than Rowan."

Rowan made a small noise in protest. Nami glared at him and he backed down.

Nami fixed her glare back on Miki and said, "You're either with us or against us. What's it going to be Miki? I'm only going to ask this one last time...Will you choose your rightful family or will you choose the murders that are holding you prisoner?"

Miki felt her hands tremble, this was a fight she knew she couldn't win. Maybe she could take Nami. She didn't have her weapon, _Infinity, _and if Rowan and Blitz joined in the battle...she would definitely lose quickly. Blitz had the ability to use Genjutsu and that was something Miki knew she would have a hard time over coming. Rowan may be fast and stronger than anyone she had ever met, but he was definitely the dumbest. Nami had clearly shown superior skill as far as the mind jutsu capabilities their people possessed. Miki couldn't judge how Nami would be in an actual physical fight though...

Miki closed her eyes a moment and remembered the lake that Kenchi would take her to for training. He taught her how to use her chakra to walk on water. He would have her do training exercises with _infinity_ while standing on the lake water. She fell through the water many times until she was able to multitask and concentrate her chakra to her feet as she completed training routines. Kenchi had trained her very well, but now she had a doubt about herself she never had before. She had the memories that Nami showed her...the village burning while she was taken away as a baby.

Then she remembered Gai, he always overcame overwhelming odds. He always had such an energetic and positive spirit...he overcame so much through sheer determination and hard work. He didn't care what anyone said about him, he was going to be the best that he could be. And when he achieved his best...he would push himself to be greater. He was her rightful family...it may not be blood that bonded them together, but it was something deeper. She wanted to be with Gai, her adopted brother. If she got out of here alive, she was going to tell him how much she loved him.

Miki smiled wistfully as she thought of Gai and answered, "I choose family."

Nami exhaled a sigh of relief. "I was hoping you would do the right thing and choose us."

Miki tilted her head and answered, "By family...I meant Gai...my REAL brother. True family would not offer me up to Blitz to experiment on. I choose The Leaf." Miki quickly averted her eyes so that Nami couldn't enter her mind.

"Stay out of this." Nami commanded Blitz, who was about to get up. "This is between me and Miki...I will settle this."

"Stay back, Rowan." Miki said softly. "I do not wish to hurt anyone, but I will defend myself."

"Miki, please don't fight Nami." Rowan gently said behind her.

"Rowan..." Miki looked over her shoulder at him. "I'm sorry but Nami has left me no choice."

"Nami is strong." Rowan answered cautiously.

Miki smiled. "So am I."

"Stay out of this, Rowan." Nami warned him.

Rowan nodded reluctantly and withdrew.

Miki looked at Nami's feet and asked, "Are you sure you want to fight me? I'm giving you one last chance...it doesn't have to be like this."

"You're a fool." Nami growled.

Miki took a defensive stance. "That may be...but I do this with a clear conscious."

Nami was suddenly behind Miki and whispered. "Not a bad choice for your last words."

Nami was fast, but so was Miki. Miki spun quickly and the two women began exchanging blows, neither one landing a hit. Miki kept her eyes at Nami's feet the whole time to avoid being caught in her mind jutsu. Miki knew that if that happened, she would be done for. Miki grabbed Nami's arms, holding her in front of her.

"You're still that scared little girl, watching her village burn." Miki spoke to her as if she was a wounded animal. "Pain and revenge is all you know...it holds you back from true happiness."

"Don't try to counsel me, Miki." Nami answered with a snarl before head-butting her. Nami smiled, satisfied with the blood that trickled from Miki's headband and into her eye.

Miki was dazed a moment before she answered, "You think that's what I'm doing?" She laughed as blood trickled into her mouth as she spoke. "I'm not trying to counsel you at this point, I'm telling you the honest truth. You're too blind by hate to see past your own damned nose."

Nami screamed as she head-butted Miki again, blood spattered on their clothes. Miki's face was now almost covered in her own blood. The world around her blurred like an unfocused camera lens as she lost her grip on Nami. Miki shook her head in an attempt shake out of her daze as she focused on Nami and resumed her defensive stance.

"When I'm done with you..." Nami spoke in her sickingly sweet tone, "You'll be begging for death."

Miki responded with a snort. "I've heard that before."

An enraged Nami came at Miki again. Their moves so fast, it looked as though their hands and feet were blurs. Blitz remained in his meditative stance, completely detached from the situation around him. Rowan watched them fight with regretful eyes. He was loyal to Nami to a fault, he would follow her even though he knew their actions were wrong.

Miki blocked every move Nami threw at her, but the mental fatigue she suffered from Blitz's attack was catching back up to her. She lost her footing for a mere second and Nami caught her by the arm, forcing her to the floor.

Nami laughed darkly. "I'm feeling generous.." She commented as she twisted Miki's arm, making her cry out in pain.

Rowan stepped forward to intervene, but stopped in his tracks when Nami threw him a death glare. He took a step back and averted his gaze away from them.

"Really?" Miki grunted. "How so?"

"I'm giving you one last chance... Cut your ties to The Leaf and this will all be over. We will be family and you can be a part of our plan to right the wrong that was done to our clan." Nami held Miki's arm firmly.

Miki was afraid, she didn't want to die at this moment. She never even got a chance to tell Kakashi how she felt about him. She wanted to see her brother one more time. She thought of Kenchi and the strange friendship that they had. She almost laughed at the thought of him finding another partner. He was very difficult to get along with, but they made it work. If she turned her back on The Leaf, that would mean turning her back on everyone she cared about. She looked over at Rowan, who was still looking away. Rowan wasn't like Nami, he didn't carry hatred in his heart. Going against Nami would mean going against him as well.

"Well?" Nami twisted her arm impatiently.

Miki screamed before answering, "No...what you're doing is wrong. You can't heal your broken heart with hatred and revenge. Agreeing to this would be agreeing to destroy what is left of our clan. I would like to believe that our clan is above revenge and hatred. Having the abilities we do should make us want to understand and heal people. What The Leaf did to us was wrong, but shouldn't we try to understand them instead of causing further death and destruction?"

Nami answered with a humph, "You are weak and a disgrace to our clan."

Miki looked up at Nami, "You are the disgrace, look at how afraid Rowan is of you. I refuse to believe that is the kind of life our clan would be proud of."

Nami's face twisted into an expression of rage as she gave Miki's arm one last twist as she pushed her down. Miki could hear her bones in her arm break as her senses were overloaded with pain. She laid on the floor, writhing in agony as Nami stepped away from her with a smug expression. Nami walked around Miki, watching in delight as she screamed.

"Does it hurt?" Nami called sweetly before stepping on Miki's broken arm. "Are you ready to beg for death now?"

Miki screamed as Nami applied more pressure to her broken arm. Her screams eventually calmed down into broken whimpers as Nami backed away from her.

"I'll never beg for anything from the likes of you." Miki panted as she struggled to get up.

"Oh you will." Nami hissed before kicking Miki in the chest.

Miki collapsed back to the floor in a heap, coughing. Tiny droplets of blood splattered on the floor as she coughed. Her vision went fuzzy around the edges, she felt something rattle in her chest as she pushed at the floor. All of her strength went in an attempt to stand only for her to fall back to the floor.

"Get away from her." A familiar voice threatened. Miki swore it sounded like Kenchi.

Nami smiled as she stood over Miki. "We have guests."

"Miki!" Gai called out. He took in the horrific sight of his sister, crumpled on the floor in a bloody heap. Were they too late? Was she dead?

Kakashi's eye was wide as he ran into the room and saw the same horrific scene. His gaze met the dark haired woman that stood over her wearing a smug expression.

"Rowan...Blitz." Nami smiled in amusement. "Why don't you give our guests a proper welcome."

Blitzed opened his creepy eyes with a bored expression. "I don't take orders from you...but in any case I can't let them have her." He stood.

Gai called out to his sister again as his hands clenched into trembling fists.

Miki felt her dulled senses wake up a little at the plea of her brother. Gai? She thought to herself. She struggled to open her eyes and forced deep, painful breaths. She needed to stand up, but her body protested. Nami's feet slowly came into focus as Miki forced herself to stay conscious. She wanted to see her brother again. She didn't care if they weren't blood related...that didn't matter to her anymore. He was her brother and there wasn't anything that would change that.

"Gai..." Miki whispered. No one heard her though. She put all of her focus into willing her body to move as she began to push herself up.

"Oh, you're awake again." Nami snorted.

Gai sighed in relief as he watched Miki feebly move into a kneeling position. He waited in agonizing suspense as she slowly turned to face him. He smiled reassuringly at his little sister. His heart felt heavy in his chest as he watched her blood stained face and she returned his smile with a feeble one. He needed to get her out of here, she looked bad. Her left arm hung lifelessly at her side, blood soaking through her green sleeve. That arm was clearly broken.

"You're the one who stole the forbidden Jutsu." Kenchi said to Nami with a harden expression.

"Well," Nami chuckled. "I see you're about as smart as she is. I didn't steal it, I reclaimed it. The Leaf stole it from my clan."

"Your clan became power hungry and wanted to control people. They were a threat to human kind. Are we proud of how we handled it? No...but we did what had to be done." Kenchi replied.

"I'll be sure to put that on your tombstone." Nami smiled sinisterly.

Kenchi smiled. "That's kind of you, but it will be difficult for you if you die first."


	13. Chapter 13

Kenchi looked at Miki, she was knelt down holding her blood soaked arm. She was clearly in a tremendous amount of pain, blood matted down her bangs and stained her right cheek.

"Stand up Miki." Kenchi commanded her.

"Kenchi..." She squeezed her eyes shut, wincing in agony before opening them. "You're here."

"Get up and finish this." Kenchi reached in his pack and pulled out a scroll. "Your fight isn't over yet."

"But my arm." Miki flinched. "The bone is shattered."

"And the Gods graced you with another arm. Now, stand up." Kenchi summoned _infinity _with the scroll and held the massive hoop blade with one hand.

"Infinity..." Miki eyed her weapon.

"Remember your training. Push the pain aside. Put it away in the furthest corner of your mind. We'll get through it later..together." Kenchi's voice softened from his commanding tone as he added, "Like last time."

Miki pushed herself to her feet, her body protesting at every muscle movement. Her hand gripped her shattered arm as she stood. She coughed for a moment before wiping the fresh blood from her mouth.

"Don't be an idiot, Miki." Nami snorted. "You are clearly beaten."

"Miki!" Gai called. She looked over her shoulder at him and smiled before turning her attention back to Nami.

"I thought I could heal everyone. If I could just understand them..." Miki pushed back her blood soaked bangs, her left arm hung limp at her side. "But I do understand you, there's nothing but vengeance in your heart."

"As there should be in yours." Nami answered, flicking her dark hard over her shoulder.

"Vengeance is holding your own free will prisoner." Miki steadied herself into a defensive stance. She reached inside of her own mind and pushed the pain as far back into a corner as she could. Her breathing slowed down to normal as she stood more confidently and opened her eyes.

Nami's eyes widened as she gasped in surprise.

"You wish to control people's free will. But how can you when you can't control your own?" Miki looked over her shoulder at Kenchi.

Kenchi smiled as he tossed her _infinity,_ her hoop blade. This was the Miki he had trained over the years and he was proud of her. He was ready to jump in, should she need him. He would not let his comrade die, but this was her fight and she needed to finish it.

Miki caught the massive hoop with one hand as she turned to Nami and said, "Once we start down this path, it will only end when one of us is dead. This is your last chance to let go of the hate in your heart. If you have any doubt of your path of vengeance, now is the time to confess...otherwise, prepare yourself."

Nami snorted. "This will only end with either your complete submission or your death."

Miki pulled the hoop blade over her head and stopped at her waist and sighed, "I thought as much." She began to swivel her hips as the hoop danced around her ominously, making a whistling noise. "This is _infinity_. Both of you are about to become well acquainted with each other."

Kakashi commented to Kenchi, "That's a very large weapon for her size."

Kenchi smiled, "I never noticed that. She handles it very gracefully."

Kakashi looked over at Blitz and said to Kenchi, "I'll take creepy eyes over there."

Gai looked over at Rowan and said, "Consider it an honor I challenge you as a worthy opponent."

Blitz sighed as he rolled his eyes. "Why does everyone always call me that? I mean at least I have both of my eyes."

"I'll be on stand by to support Miki if she needs it." Kenchi told Gai and Kakashi.

"She's in no condition to fight!" Gai protested.

The sound of Miki's hoop blade striking against Nami's dagger rung through the room.

"I think we can trust Kenchi to know her limits, Gai. He's the one she trains with after all." Kakashi reassured him. Truth was he was a little uneasy about her continuing to fight Nami in her state, but he was going to have to ultimately trust Miki to know her own limit. He watched her dance gracefully with the hoop blade as Nami deflected each attempt before he turned to his opponent Blitz.

Nami was beginning to lose ground with Miki. She caught the hoop blade using her two daggers before it could strike her in the face.

Nami frowned as she strained. "It's a shame you can't see the truth for what it is."

Miki snorted. "That you want to use mind control to have your vengeance?"

"You may see it as Vengeance, I see it as serving justice. Its a pity I have to kill you. When I'm done with you, I'm going to kill your fake brother and then your two friends." Nami growled.

Miki in her fury, forgot not to make eye contact with Nami and their eyes met. Instead of feeling the familiar pull into the other person's mind, she felt Nami intruding into her own. Miki was unable to block her from entering, The sounds of battle and the room faded away into darkness.

Miki gasped as she dropped her weapon and looked down at herself. She was spotless, not a drop of blood on her and her arm was no longer broken. She felt panic rise at the realization she was inside her own mind and Nami was in here with her.

"Nami?! Show yourself." Miki whirled frantically.

"Lots on interesting things in here." Nami answered, echoing in the darkness.

Miki laughed. "If you're going to try to break me mentally, don't waste your time."

Nami stepped into view from the darkness. "I pity you. You let your mind be abused for years in the name of helping that place you call home."

"My mind was never abused. Everything I did was of my own accord." Miki didn't bother getting into a fighting stance. Its impossible to do physical harm in someone's mind. This had turned into a completely different type of fight.

"You have experienced what you call echoes. In the times of our clan, it was a sign of trauma and mental abuse, being forced to see and experience things to violent for your own mind." Nami averted her eyes in disgust. "In simple terms, they stretched you beyond your mental capability. This probably explains why you can't see things clearly. You're damaged."

As Nami spoke, she showed a montage of the horrific things Miki had seen in the minds of the criminals she had spoken to over the years. Different images of herself being raped or beaten.

Miki looked away. "None of that really happened to me. It was all just in the mind."

"You honestly believe that...little sister?" Nami approached Miki slowly before putting a hand on her shoulder. "You don't understand that the mind and soul doesn't see a difference between physical reality and..." Nami waved her hand to the images. "And this?"

"I saved lives, innocent lives going through what I did. That was worth it to me!" Miki glared at Nami as she shoved her away.

"At this rate, in a few years you will become mentally unstable. You won't be able to distinguish between reality and illusion. You will become a danger to yourself and anyone around you. You think me to be a villain, but there's so much that you don't know." Nami spoke in her sweet voice.

Everything Nami was saying was everything Miki had ever feared about herself. She constantly battled with the idea of herself being damaged and hurting people she cared about. She could never forgive herself if she hurt her brother or her friends. "That's not true." She shivered as she mumbled to herself, sinking to her knees. Her legs felt to rubbery to stand on. "That's not true."

"I'm only telling you this in compassion for you. I offer you a merciful death. I would rather let you go peacefully than see you tormented any longer. Aren't you tired of suffering quietly inside of yourself?" Nami looked down at Miki with pity. "I had no idea you were so tormented."

Images of Miki filled the darkness, images of her waking covered in sweat and screaming, her cutting or stabbing herself to stop the echoes. She felt heavier, an invisible force was pushing her to the floor. She wanted to lay down, her energy was leaving her.

"You were always suffering, alone. Let me end that for you. I love you too much to see you like this." Nami knelt down and smiled at Miki.

Alone...Miki thought as she closed her eyes. She thought of all the times she went home..alone after a rough day. She cried into her pillow at night when the visions were too much. Then she remembered Gai's smile. She remembered when they were kids and he would sit up with her all night when she couldn't sleep. She almost smiled as she recalled how over protective he could be, especially when it came to her dating life. She remembered Kenchi visiting her in the hospital when she was injured and all the training sessions they had together. She gasped when she thought of Kakashi. He had been inside her mind and he completely accepted her for who she is.

She was never truly alone...and the times that she was alone it was because she had chose to be alone. She had people in her life that loved her.

"No." Miki opened her eyes. "I was never alone."

"Really? You poor delusional thing." Nami gestured at the images of Miki suffering, "You can't even see what's in front of you? They've destroyed you."

"No they haven't." Miki stood. "They made me strong."

Nami took a few steps back from Miki as the images changed. It showed Miki training at the lake with Kenchi, he was pulling her out of the water. Another showed her teasing Gai with the cat, Sushi. An image of Gai carrying her home after she was too exhausted to walk emerged. And then, an image of Kakashi kissing her showed itself.

"There's so much love in my life." Miki smiled. "What you're looking for is just the bad. You want me to be as miserable as you are, but it doesn't have to be that way Nami. You can have happiness too, you just have to let go of that hatred inside of you."

Nami grimaced a moment before recovering with a smile. "I have happiness. I finally have the jutsu I need and killing you will only bring me more happiness. I tried to be merciful for you, but you wouldn't listen to reason."

Miki closed her eyes and divided her chakra as the air around them thickened with soundless thunder. She disrupted Nami's chakra flow as she acted in the mind realm as well as the physical world.

Nami's eyes widened as she grunted. "How?" She coughed as blood trickled from her lips.

The world came crashing back as they were sucked out of Miki's mind and back into reality. The Miki that stood in front of Nami disappeared with a poof! to reveal the real Miki standing behind Nami. One of the jagged edges of her hoop blade impaled Nami from behind and was sticking out of her chest as blood began to bloom around the opening.

"How?" Nami's voice screeched.

"You were in _my _mind..." Miki said softly as she pulled out the blade. "I can still control my physical body because my consciousness never left it. You were too arrogant to see the error in your plan in breaking me emotionally."

Nami fell to her knees as blood began to flow more freely.

"Nami!" Rowan shouted as he ran from Gai to be at her side. He caught her and held her in his arms as she coughed.

"Rowan.." She whispered as she touched his face with a trembling hand.

"Hey..." He brushed her hair away tenderly.

Nami tried to speak to him, but could only make gargling noises.

Rowan smiled with tears in his eyes. "Remember the meadow? Remember spending time together there? That's the Nami I remember. Think about that."

Nami coughed. "Y..yes."

"It's summer time and the field is buzzing with those annoying bugs you hate, but we're together." Rowan pulled her closer. "We'll always be together. I love you."

"I...love you." Nami replied almost completely inaudible. Rowan was the only one that heard her. Her face went slack as her body went limp.

"Nami?" Rowan choked as he embraced her tightly, but Nami didn't reply.

Nami was dead.


End file.
